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THE ARCHED ROCK. 
ISLET OF MACKINAW. 

From a Sketch by H. C. H.-A. See pages 125, 319, 323. 



WLt&ttm SSSooDS an* WLattxz : 



POEMS AND ILLUSTKATIVE NOTES. 



BY 



JOHN HOSKYNS-ABRAHALL, Jun., M.A. 

ItfCCrMBEtfT OF COMBE LOtfGA, OXOIT, AtfD LATE FELLOW OF 
LIXCOLtf COLLE&E, OXFOED. 



*•*.'• amid the sweep of endless woods, 
Blue pomp of lakes, high cliffs, and falling floods/ 

Woedswoeth {An Evening Walk), 

* 'miracula Naturse, mores barbaroruin, fabulosas insulas.' 

Keble {PrcBlectiones, xi.). 
1 Al was this londe fulfylled of fayrye/ 

Chaucee (Cfye W$ of *8a%s &nie). 



WITH MAP AND PEONTISPIECE. 



* J XONDON:' 
LONGMAN, GREEN, LONGMAN, ROBERTS, & GREEN. 

1864. 



\ 









fciSi 



QZ 



*Au milieu de nos champs cultivds, en vain l'imagination cherche a 
s'dtendre; elle rencontre de toutes parts les habitations des hommes: — mais 
dans ces pays dCserts Tame se plait a s'enfoncer, a se perdre, dans un oce"an 
d'6ternelles forgts; elle aime & errer, a la darte" des Ctoiles, aux bords des 
lacs immenses, a planer sur la gouffre mugissant des terribles cataracts, 
a tomber avec la masse des ondes, et, pour ainsi dire, k se meler, a se fondre, 
avec toute une nature sauvage et sublime.' — Chateattbbiand (Revolutions 
anciennes et modernes; livre I. part ii. chap. 57). 

'* * * quae passim foras nocte dieque sentirent, veneranda, pulchra, 
splendida,— ilia omnia notaverint quasi signa prsesentium Deorum. Ex quo 
effectum esse, ut totidem colerent Numina, quot haberet rerum natura sive 
formidinis sive venustatis species/ — Ke:ble ( Wordsworthii de Graiis versus 
summatim reddens, apud Prcelectioneu de Poeticce Vi Medicd, prsel. xxx.). ' 



< 



CONTENTS. 



PAGES 
ix — xxiii 



Introduction .... 

List of Supplemental Notes ; &c. 

Errata, &c, in the Appendix-Notes 

SftHtfjpfcerrg i^lnnn; or, a July among the woods and 

WATERS OF THE EeD MAN . . . Xxix 

Dedicatory lines 

Errata, &c, in Eagpfterrg fflotm . 

Canto I. — Meres and woods. 



XXV — XXY11 

. xxviii 



xxx 

xxxii 



1. Departure from the northern shore of Lake Ontario. — 

2. Up through the woods, in the morning. — 3. The horse 
sawing. — 4. Steam sawing. — 5. Down to Lake Simcoe. — 
6. Lake Simcoe in the fore-noon. — 7. The chipmunk. — 
8. Lake Kootchi-tching — 9. Orillia. — 10. %\z gxtmnur- 
zizzmzx on t\z tazxz. — 11. Lake Simcoe in the afternoon. 
— 12. Eeturn to land. — 13. The woods at night, and their 
inhabitants. . . . . . 1 — 10 

Canto II. — The embryo city. 

1. The settlement in the woods. — 2. The rattling locust, — 

3. The woods at noon, and their inhabitants . . 11 — 16 

Canto III. — Earth, wood, and water. 

1. The embarkation. — 2. Morning on the Georgian Bay.— 
A 3 



VI CONTENTS. 

3. The Blue Mountains.— 4. Cabot's Head.— 5. Night-fall 
on the waters. — 6. Dawn amid the islets. — 7. Noon at the 
copper-mines.— 8. St. Joseph's Island. — 9. Up St. Mary's 
Eiver 17—24 

Canto IV.— Sunshine on Keetchi Gahmi. 

1. The Saut Ste. Marie Canal. — 2. The entrance of Great 
Water. (1.) Grey mountains. (2.) Green islands. — 3. A 
gorgeous, but ill-omened, sunset. — 4. The Water-Wraith's 
home . . . . . 25—30 

Canto V. — Stobm, and fog, and rocks. 

1. Bushing into the snare. — 2. The compass at fault. — 
3. Our guidance. — 4. Our movements. — 5. The breakers. — 
6. A glimpse of the sun. — 7. A glimpse of the mountain- 
top. — 8. St. Ignace. — 9. The fog reclosing. — 10. The sunken 
rocks.— 11. Mudjiekeewis.— 12. The Sun God.— 13. The 
deliverance ...... 31 — 40 

Canto VI. — Mountains and islands. 

1. Speeding onward. — 2. Islet and coast. — 3. Distant 
heights. — 4. Ninnibohzhoo. — 5. Isle Eoyale. — 6. Thunder 
Mountain. — 7. The Eed Man's superstition. — 8. The en- 
trance of Thunder Bay. — 9. The two janitors. — 10. The 
lone height. — 11. Thunder Bay and "Welcome Islands. — 
12. The delta. — 13. Exchange of greetings. — 14. Landing 
at Fort William - 41—54 

Canto VII.— §nk gutZ UXth $*& &hm. 

1. The oasis in the Far West— 2. The cows. —3. The 
deputation, and our host. — 4. The Fort, and its past. — 5. 



CONTENTS. Vll 

The first delivery of Her Majesty's mail. — 6. Our return 
to Thunder Bay. — 7. The pappoose. — 8. Braiding and 
plaiting ...... 55 — 67 

Canto VIII. — The Kahmtntstikwoya. 

1. The birch-bark boat on the river. — 2. The mission, and 
the wigwams. — 3. The vista beyond . . 68 — 73 

Canto IX.— Hrelmafo antr fyz IBv&tovtojinzzg « 74—80 

Canto X. — The wonders of the welkin. 

1. Sunset on Thunder Bay. — 2. The moon over the isle of 
the lone height.— 3. The Northern Lights. — 4. Grand Por- 
tage Bay. — 5. By headland and islet. — 6. The Mirage 

81—87 

Canto XI.— Cf)£ dfattfjlegg Js>qttafo atrtf fyz Jrtatelg 

Crane ; or, the origin of the whitensh and of the 

totem of the Cranes. 

1. Introduction.— t. Cfte OTtjjfoam tu tf)£ dfar 

$0rtl)*— it. fE%t Pfjantnm.— ttt. €3)2 ijWfjjrattnn.— 

ib. W§Z &apttf£.— L'Envoi . . . 88—115 

Canto XII. — The islet of the Mahnitoos. 

1. Down St. Mary's Eiver. — 2. The islet-thronged strait. — 
3. The queen of the islets. — 4. Mishaboo.— 5. The thanks- 
giving.— 6. The White Man.— 7. (1.) The Sugar-Loaf. 
(2.) The Arched Eock.— 8. The bone caves.— 9. The 
Mahnitoos ..... 116—128 

Canto XIII— Ojs ebiXXxzzmzx antf fyz ^atavltttig. 
1. ®%z mil mxzzm.— 2. W%z 3ttuantatt0tt.— 3. Cfje 

A 4 



Vlll CONTENTS. 

Snierfciefo*— 4. SH&e (Bbtttoctamzt zlimz in ffytfUami* 

ta^$tflf)t— 5\ m>Z g>tqutl . . • 129—144 

Canto XIV. — Home with the waters. 

1. Farewell to Mackinaw. — 2. Lake Huron and the burning 
woods. — 3. Streams and meres. — 4. The Niagara Eiver, 
above the Eapids. — 5. The Niagara Eiver, from the Eapids 
to Queenston Heights. (1.) The view from above. (2.) The 
Eapids. (3.) The islet-labyrinth. (4.) Goat Island and the 
Falls, (5.) The spray and its bow. (6.) The ghost-like 
sheets of spray. (7.) The Eiver and its gorge. (8.) The 
rapids below the. Bridge. (9.) The Whirlpool. (10.) The 
outburst. (11.) Queenston Heights and Brock's Monument. 
— 6. The prospect from the Monument. (1.) The ascent of 
the column. (2.) The ridge. (3.) The champaign. (4.) The 
Eiver, and its future. — 7. Across Lake Ontario . 145—158 

Canto XV.— %\t $hrg tA Jloflfr* . . 159—172 

Appendix-Notes . 173—372 

Supplemental Notes .... 373 — 384 

oe, the vision on the dark elver . . 385 — 400 

Abbreviations. — I. Words in frequent use . 401 — 402 

II. Authorities . . . 402 — 406 

Index ..... 407—419 



INTRODUCTION. 



(1.) ^taggbSTrp JSt00ti; or, a July among the woods and 
waters of the Bed Man. 

A. Its main narrative. 

a. Subject. 

b. Metre. 

B. Its secondary parts. 

C. Its episodical stories. 

a. The Eed Man's stories. 

b. My specimens. 

a. Their "bases. 
/3. Their positions. 

D. Its construction. 

E. Its title. 

F. Its Appendix-Notes. 

a. The Appendix-Notes proper. 

b. The Supplemental Notes. 

c. Their order. 

(2.) QEfyt JEafjItflljta'g SBream; or, the vision on the Bark 
Biver. 

(3.) The explanations of the abbreviations of the authorities. 

(4.) The index. 



X INTRODUCTION. 

Ra&p- (1.) A. a. The main parts* of the substance of the 

berry 

Moon, fifteen cantos, which are collectively termed M#0|):= 
Main fltVV}) JKl00H> or, a July among the woods and 

narra- 

*™ e ' waters of the Bed Man, comprise a narrative of a 
short tour, — in July, 1858, — through that magnificent 
region, which presents the grandest combination f of 

* Canto I. paragraphs 1—9, 11—13; II.; III. 2—9; IV. 
1_ 3; y. 1_12; VI.; VIII. ; X.; XII.; XIV. (The words 
1 canto ' and ' paragraph' are omitted in all future references.) 

f " If people in England had any idea of the lovely scenery 
and delightful climate of the American lakes, they would not 
confine their yachting to European waters. There are 2000 
miles of lake-navigation, affording fishing and scenery unsur- 
passed by any in the world ; while the numerous settlements on 
the shores would serve as. pleasant resting-places, from which 
excursions might be made into the interior in bark-canoes, or 
shooting- expeditions organized. Now that the canal at the Sault 
Ste. Marie is finished, which connects Lake Superior with Lakes 
Michigan and Huron, there is nothing to prevent a yacht, not 
drawing more than 8J feet of water, sailing from Liverpool to 
Fond du Lac, the last 2000 miles' from the mouth of the St. 
Lawrence being entirely inland navigation. Lake Huron is so 
abundantly studded with islands, that one might cruise on it for 
months and always find fresh points of interest, and sail through 
new channels each more beautiful than the last ; while the im- 
mense advantage of always being able to land in rough weather 
is one which yachtsmen are for the most part not slow to avail 
themselves of." (O. p. 86.) 



INTRODUCTION. XI 

inland woods 'and waters, that earth can show.* The 
excursion occupied three weeks, f 

About a week J was passed in the first mail-boat to 
Lake Superior. § She was but a little tug; she was 
making her ' trial trip ' ; the dangerous waters she was 
to ply in were unknown to her master and crew; nor 
was she yet fitted for the accommodation of passengers. 
My wife and myself were the only purely amateur 
members of the, little party ; and she was the only 
female on board. Some of the following pages |] will 
show that we had by no means a mere pleasure-trip. % 

It was a great change from that little tug to the 
Illinois, a large and well-equipped excursion- steamer 
of Cleveland (Lake Erie). On her we went from Saut 
Ste. Marie to Mackinaw.** 

* I give the times, as they may serve for the guidance of 
tourists. 

f July 9, 7'15 a. m.— 29, 10 p. m. 

| July 12, 10*30 a.m.— 18, 11 a.m. 

§ See p. 17 (f. n.). 

|| Pp. 31—38, 225—228. 

% This part of the trip is comprised in III. — VIII., and X. 

** July 20, 6 a.m. — 2 p.m. This voyage is comprised in 
XII. 1, 2. 



Xll INTRODUCTION. 

Afterwards, however, we 'roughed it' not a little 
in a Chicago ' propeller ',* which took us from 
Mackinaw to Buffalo.*)* 

My sketches of the scenery of the Niagara EiverJ 
result, not merely from the flying visit of that excur- 
sion^ but also from sojourns at several points on both 
sides, in different seasons of the years 1857, 1858, and 
1859. It has been observed by others, || besides myself, 
that the scenery of this most striking part of the 
Laurentian water-system requires time, in order that 
it may be adequately appreciated. 
Metre. b. I scarce need offer an apology for the metre of 
the main narrative. It is the metre of Kalevala, the 
national epic of the Finnlanders, — a poem which no 
mean anthority^ places in the same rank with The 
Iliad. It is the metre of The Song of Hiawatha, Mr. 

* See p. 66 (f. n.). 

f July 25, 9 p.m. — 29, 4.30 a.m. This voyage is comprised 
in XIV. 1—3. 

\ In XIV. (4—6) and XV. 

§ On July 29, 1858. 

|| See (e. g.) Ly. Tr. vol. i. ch. ii. (p. 27). 

^f Professor Max Miiller ( The Languages of the Seat of War 
in the East, 2nd. edn., p. 116). 



INTRODUCTION. Xlll 

Longfellow's beautiful rehabilitation of a group of the 
Red Man's legends ; * and, as such, it is declared by 
Herr Kohlf to be "a very good imitation of the 
1 Indian ' uncadenced delivery," which he compares to 
" the continued rustling of a stream," and to " the 
murmurs of the wind." J Having Mr. Longfellow's 
poem often in my hands, and moving — as I was and 
felt I was — among the scenes of that charming little 
epos, I almost involuntarily cast my narrative in the 
same mould. I trust that my copious interspersion of 
other measures has prevented this one from being dis- 
agreeably monotonous. 

B. The parts, which may be termed secondary, § second- 
ary 
require but few introductory words. It is hoped that parts - 

they relieve the main narrative. 

The Water-Wraith's home, || the centre-piece of 

three of them,l[ was suggested by the slight mention 

* This poem is often referred to, and illustrated, in my 
Appendix-Notes (see Index). On its value in more than one 
respect, see p. 267 (f. n.). 

t K p. 87. J Cf. K. p. 248. 

§ I. 10, III. 1, IY. 4, V. 13, VII., XV. 

II IV. 4. 

% The other two form III. 1 and V. 13. 



XIV INTEODUCTION. 

of the Water- Spirits in that legend about Michi icoten 
Island, which is related by Father Dablon.* Since 
it was written, I have found that such a superstition 
actually exists, the subject of it being a deep hole in 
the midst of Lake Huron. f 

Canto VII. may be viewed -as filling somewhat the 
part of the intermezzo in a drama, Canto XV. as 
corresponding with the finale in a musical compo- 
sition. 
Episodi- C. a. Numerous interesting legends, — produced by 

cal 

ThePed ^ e prolific imagination of the Red Men, and handed 

stories, down among them from generation to generation, — 

are recounted in the wigwam during the long iter- 

evenings, to the delight of White strangers as vvell as 

the Eed folk themselves, f 

* See p. 218. 

f See p. 188; cf. XIII., and %\)Z 2Bal)!uifjta 9 tf {Bream 

(Hi. 7). 

X Cat. i. 80, 83—85; P. ch. i. ; K. pp. 86—88. It has been 
since my composition of Canto XI., that I have seen the pas- 
sages, here referred to, in the two first of these books. Great 
part of that in the last of the three is quoted by me in pp. 114, 
115. It may be well to state here that the ' coureurs des bois ' 
are pedlars in the fur-trade service. 



INTRODUCTION. XV 

b. ( . Of my three episodical cantos,* — the first and My spe- 
cimens : 

second are based on two of the legends collected in a their 

bases, 

small volume by Dr. Schoolcraft, f — the third on a 
tradition, which was related to Herr Kohl \ as of an 
actual event not very distant. 

I have not produced these stories. Their insertion 
would but have served to show the very paraphrastic 
character of the cantos founded upon them ; and the 
bulk already attained by my volume has necessitated 
the omission of more useful matter. The basis of 5Tf)£ 
ISafjfeOfjta'g Mtt&m f which is given at the end of 
that little poem, may be taken as a specimen of the 
exter -co which the stories have been my materials, 
in proportion to the amount supplied by my own 
fancy, my knowledge of the Eed Man's manners and 
customs, and my almost involuntarily catching some- 
thing, I would fain hope, of his thought and feeling. § 

The traditionary tales are thus freely handled by the 



* IX., XI, XIII. t Sch. H. L. pp. 299, 265. 

% K. p. 422. 

§ " Mihi, vetustas res scribenti, nescio quo pacto antiquus fit 
animus" (Liv. xliii. 13)/ 



XVI INTRODUCTION. 

native story-tellers. Herr Kohl* writes as follows : — 
" It was clear to me that every narrator added much 
of his own, and altered a good deal according to his 
taste, The same story has been told me by two diffe- 
rent persons, and I have noticed considerable varia- 
tions, although the groundwork and style of composition 
remained the same." f 
and po- /3. It may be well to give here the grounds for the 

sitions. 

respective positions of my episodes. 

That part of the southeastern coast of Lake Superior, 
which is called Le Grand Sable, J is the proper scene 

of Ueeltitato attJJ tf}t pwfeiau&Httm>;§ but i 

took the liberty of inserting the story where it is, 
because it seemed peculiarly adapted for that place. || 

©fie dFaittyltw guttata* atr& fyt Stately 

(&X$Ut% is the getiological legend of the Cranes of 
Saut Ste. Marie : ** it accounts for the origin of the 
whitefish,|f their principal food,j"f — as well as for the 

* K. p. 88. f See also XL [p. Ill, f. n.]. 

J See pp. 294, 381. § IX. 

|| See p. 295 (f. n.). If XL 

** See pp. 110, 313, 199. 

ff See, especially, pp. 346 (f. n.), 199. 



INTRODUCTION, XV11 

settlement of their clan at those rapids, where it is 
caught in perfection.* &\)Z Q&tsUXlXt&mtX att& 
tf)£ fflJSatet^iSJUtflt is not localised by Herr Kohl : 
a versifier may, I think, fairly claim to be permitted 
to lay its scene on " the pebbly beach "$ of the 
haunted isle of Mackinaw, § — an islet, which, by the 
way, strongly reminded me of that created in The 
Tempest by the imagination of Shakespeare. 
D. It was while- — feeling somewhat as if con- 

struc- 
We were the first, that ever burst 
Into that silent sea — 

we gazed on the gorgeous, but ill-omened, sunset, 
which closed the cloudless day of our entrance into 
Lake Superior, || that it struck me I would occupy any 
spare intervals in the course of our trip by composing 
a light verse-account of it somewhat after Horace's of 
his jaunt to Brundisium. I merely intended to send 
it to English friends, as a relief to a matter-of-fact 
prose diary. . Then and there I scribbled off such an 
account of the first day's incidents, — while we 

* pp. 110, 199, 346 (f.n.). f XIII. J See p. 316(f. n.). 
§ a. n. 72. II See IV. 3. 



XV111 INTRODUCTION, 

Westward, westward .... 
Sail'd into the fiery sunset, 
Sail'd into the purple vapours, 
Sail'd into the dusk of evening.* 

On Lake Superior, and at the rapids f between that 
lake and Lake Huron, I composed the substance of the 
main narrative, to the end of the description of one of 
the Ojibwa wigwams on the Kahministikwoya.f The 
composition of the rest served to while away part of a 
voyage across the Atlantic in the following summer. 

Thus my account of the scenes and incidents of the 
trip was composed while they were quite fresh in my 
recollection. 

The secondary parts, and the episodical stories, have 
been added since, — -amid the tamer scenery of central 
England. 
Title. E. The fifteeen cantos are collectively entitled 

%&&$V ? btVVQ jJHOOtt, or, a July among the woods 
and waters of the Red Man. 6 Easpberry Moon ' — 
or, the month in which the wild raspberries are 



* H. xxii. [p. 164]. 

f Saut Ste. Marie (a. n. 28). J VIII. 2. 



INTRODUCTION. XIX 

ripe — is that Ojibwa 'moon ',* which, corresponds with 

July. It is the time of the year, when the magnificent 

region, through which we rambled, is at the height of 

its short-lived summer-splendours. 

F. a. When the fifteen cantos went to the press, it Appen- 
dix- 
seemed to me best to relegate many matters to the end p^er 

of them, instead of overlaying the text with long foot- 
notes. Some of these matters required a lengthy 
treatment ; others it appeared well to associate with 
kindred subjects, under comprehensive headings. In 
the Appendix-Notes, which have resulted from these 
considerations, my first and foremost object has been 
the explanation and corroboration of my verses. 
Hence these Notes, of course, must not be expected 
to bear on the face of them many marks of originality. 
I would fain hope, however, that they may be con- 
sidered a useful addition to the stock of British litera- 
ture, as a succinct digest of , the writings of others and 
a supplement to them. Even the best of these either 
contain errors or require reference to other authorities ; 

* See a. n. 81, and the Table of the ' Moons,' which is given 
therewith. 

a 2 



XX INTRODUCTION. 

nearly all of them lose half their serviceability through 
their lack of indices, a defect to some extent remedied 
by this little volume ; many of them are quite out of 
the reach of people on this side of the Atlantic. I have 
been studiedly terse ; indeed, many of the notes are 
the results of frequent distilling and elimination. In- 
terruptions of this part of the work, caused by various 
circumstances, have, again and again, delayed the com- 
pletion of the book.* Had I not referred to the notes 
by such a host of figures, I should have summarily 
curtailed them. As it is, — that the size of the volume 
might not glaringly outrun the reasonable bounds of 
such a work, — I have been obliged to omit a large 
quantity of materials, much of which was ready for the 
press. I have some thoughts of submitting them to 
the public, ere long, in a more comprehensive shape, 
hoping that, in conjunction with others, which are in 
different stages of preparation, they may furnish useful 
* handy books ' on the aborigines of the New World 
and the immigrants from the Old, as well as a series of 
light sketches of what came under my own observation 

* The last of the cantos went to the press on Feb, 2, 1862. 



INTRODUCTION. XXI 

on the other side of the Atlantic. Meanwhile, I would 
ask a favourable reception for this little book. Its 
subject is the region of the great lakes, — a region that, 
in some respects, yields to none in interest. It is 
true that it does not comprise statistics of the fast- 
growing civilization of the White Man : such in- 
formation is soon out of date. It will, at all events, 
illustrate The Song of Hiawatha, and Herr Kohl's 
interesting notes on the same superstitions and cus- 
toms, which Mr. Longfellow has so neatly introduced 
in his spirited lays. 

b. During the composition of the Appendix-Notes, anasup- 

tal. 

I inadvertently omitted to cite some passages; and, 
while they w r ere passing through the press, I met with 
many others, most of them corroborating or illustrating 
my verses, some of them confirming or weakening the 
probability of my etymological conjectures in the 
Notes. In some cases, I have taken occasion to pro- 
duce these in later Notes; in others, I have given 
them as Supplemental Notes ; in others, again, I have 
reserved them for future use.* 

* This last course has been taken in the case of an intended 
*a3 



XX11 INTKODUCTION. 

Their c. To facilitate reference to them, the Appendix- 
order. rr 

Notes proper and the Supplemental Notes are placed 
in the order of the occurrence of their subjects in the 
fifteen cantos. As they are not systematically arranged, 
a list of them in the Table of Contents, as well as in 
the Index, would but have uselessly enlarged the 
volume. 
TheDah- (3.) Cfif jP&!)fe0f)t& y MVt&VXf or, the vision 

kohtcCs 

Dream. Qn ^ g J) ar fc River, — a poem composed last January, — 
appears to me to be suitably included in the same 
volume with WiMyfotVXQ ifttOOll* The Appendix- 
Notes to the latter explain and illustrate both. 

The (4.) The List of Authorities, given to explain the 

Supplement to the 39th Appendix-Note. The bulk already 
attained by the volume precluded anything more than a dry and 
curt etymological treatment of a few words : it would have been 
necessary to altogether omit the myths, which refer to the 
bearers of them. This would have been very unsatisfactory to 
myself, and probably, I would fain think, to my readers also. 

So, too, I reserve the materials I had collected, from autho- 
rities ranging over the two centuries of French sway and the 
century of English, for an introductory sketch of the mutual 
relations, and the local distribution, of the Red Men, who 
formerly possessed the woods and waters of the Laurentian 
valley. 



INTKODUCTION. XX111 

Abbreviations employed in the book, may be useful to list of 

AUTHO- 

any, who desire to be more fully informed on the RITIES - 
subjects summarily treated here. 

(5.) The synopses make an exhaustive Index unne- THE 

Index. 

cessary. Further, — to avoid needless enlargement of 
the volume, I have, in many matters, merely referred 
to the last link in a chain of references. 

December, 1863. 



a 4 



LIST OF SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES; &c. 



N.B. — These notes might, otherwise, escape the reader, 
since they are not referred to in the text. They may 
be found on turning to the Index, The word, under 
which they appear in the Index, is printed in 
CAPITALS. 

The beauty of LaJces Simcoe and Kootchi-tching 
[pp. 5—8]. 

The fire-fly [pp. 9, 167]. 

The Bed Man's plaiting his hair [p. 67]. 

The use of wooden bowls and spoons \jp. 73]. 

Bass-wood [ib.~\. 

The Red Maris custom of painting himself {especially 
red) [ib.~]. 

The Trillium [p. 79], 

€ Grandfather ' a title of respect [p. 102]. 

The application of the name < mahnitoo ' to a natural 
object [p. 136], I take this opportunity for adding 
that Henry (in the passage cited in p. 382) relates 
that a rattle-snake was called by some Ojibwas ' mah- 
nitoo -make.' 



XXVI LIST OF SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES; ETC. 

'Bois Blanc 1 [p. 145]. 

Comparison of the life and death of men ivith those of 

TREES [p. 161]. 

. The Missisahgas [p. 176]. 
1 Toronto' [p. 177]. 

The ridge comprising Queenston Heights [_p. 178]. 
Old names of Lake Simcoe \jo. 179]. 

' KOOTCHI-TCHING ' \j>. 181]. 

4 Penetanguishene' [p. 182]. 

The white spruce [ib.~]. 

1 Assikinack ' and hearers of this name [p. 185]. 

1 Mahnitoolin' [_p. 187]. 

La Cloche [$.]. I take this opportunity to add, 
with regard to the vocal Egyptian stone, that it is in 
the lap of the statue, — that the word ' salamat ' 
[' salaam'] (= 'salutations'), the present name of the 
statue, is supposed to be a memorial of its daily utter- 
ance soon after sunrise, — and that the word ' Memnon ' 
is supposed to be a corruption of the name of the 
Egyptian king (Anumophth III.), by whose orders 
these two statues were erected to himself. 

The wild raspberries of the lake-country [p. 191]. 

' Mis si See pi 1 (commonly written ' Mississippi ') 
[p. 193]. 

The entrance of Lake Superior from below [jp. 200]. 

1 Mamainse 1 [p. 201]. 

Serpentine on the coast of Lake Superior [p. 209]. 



LIST OF SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES; ETC. XXvii 

Other names of Lake Superior [p. 210]. 
' Missis a wgaiegon ' [p. 211]. 
4 Saginaw'' and l Saguenay' [#.]. 
The carriboo [p. 213]. 

' Missipicooatong' or Michipicoten' [p. 215]. 
The Spirit of Lake Superior and the veneration oj 
that lake [p. 222]. 

1 Matchi Mahnitoo ' [$.]. 

Dog Portage and Lakes [p. 233], 

1 Medicine ' [p. 235]. 

4 C^zw ' [p. 244]. 

4 Kahministikwoya ' [p. 247]. 

T/ze e?epZ/& o/^e nW Saguenay [$.]. 

TAe Daekobtas [p. 270]. 

L Nadouessioux' <J'c, awe? ' Sioux' [ib.~]. 

The MuSHKODENSHUG [$.]. 

T/ie snow-shoe [p. 283], 
Ojibwa diminutive suffixes [_p. 292]. 
27ie sandy hills called l ie Grand Sable ' [p. 294]. 
O^er names of Lake Neepigon [p. 304]. 
VArbre Croche \j>. 311]. 
T7i6 Mushkodainsug \j>. 334]. 
2%e Ojibwa name of the Milky Way [p. 345].* 
(Mer o/<# names of Lakes Simcoe and Superior 
[pp. 351-2]. 



XXVX11 



Errata, etc., in the Appendix-Notes. 

Page 178 ; middle: strike out [cf. a. n. 72 (4.)] 

— 199; middle: read Talon 

— 211 ; lines 13, 14 : strike out, \stly, Micha (see a. n. 72), 

and 2ndly, , 72 

— 217 ; lines 7 — 8: for six weeks read five weeks, with two 

men, 

— 235 ; line 4 : for 189 read 198 

— 249 ; foot-note : for a flower like the * Michaelmas daisy '■ 

read the purple-flowering meadow-rue ( Thalictrum Aqui- 
legifolium formosum) 

— 277; foot-note * : after note, insert ; Cat. vol. ii. p. 138. 

— 283 ; foot-note f : for a correction of this note, see p. 328 

(top, and foot-note). 

— 291 ; foot-note *: on further consideration, I would write 

' Kahka-bekka\ following, substantially, Bal. 

— 299 ; foot-note + ; for V read VI 

— 308 ; top : 1 withdraw what I said here ; l neepi-gon ' 

( = ' water-dirt' \ i. e. ' dirty water') would be formed like 
1 minnee-sohta\ the Dahkohta equivalent to 'water-dark', 
' i. e. dark water ' [see p. 387]. 

— 312: strike out foot-note f 

— 315 : strike out foot-note ** and see Introduction. 

— 316 ; line 14 : for Michabou read the Great Beaver [another 

mythical personage]. 

— — ; foot-notes : transpose the signs \\ and ^[ 

— — ; strike out foot-notes *, f, and ** ; also, in foot-note ^f, 

[see Intr.] 

— 324; foot-note f : strike out the words after (4, 5) 

— 325 ; foot-note I : strike out the last sentence. 

— — : strike out foot-note § 

— 327 ; foot-note § : for 119 read 199 

— 329 ; foot-note *: strike out [see Intr.] 

— 332; strike out foot-note \ 

— 334; foot-note ** : for Intr. read pp. 270 (f. n. f), 378 

(f.n.t) 



Qntyhttty Pram; 



OR 



i July among the Woods and Waters of the Red Man 



FIFTEEN CANTOS. 



* * * 'that northern stream, 
Which spreads itself into successive seas,' * * 

Wokdsworth ( The Excursion, Book iii.). 

* * * ' quee loca fabulosus 
Lambit [Hydaspes] .' 

Horace {Odes, i. 22). 



Ad Conjugem meam. 



Gaudia sestivaeque vise peric'la, 
Quodque Naturara Hesperia superbam 
Forma, et antiquum nemus, atque aquarum 

Dicere regem, — 
Quod lacus vastos velit, atque pompam 
Fluminis grandem tenui camena, — 
Hoc, vise dulcis comes atque vitge ! 

Accipe carmen.* 

xi. Cal. Jan. mdccclx. 



To my Wife. 



Record of wandering in wild western clime, 
The joys, the risks, of that sweet summer-time, — 
Strains, that would Nature's new-world grandeur sing 7 
The haught old greenwood, and of floods the king, 
His vast meres, the proud progress of his stream, — 
Accept this lay* — unworthy such high theme — , 
Comrade in western wilds ! comrade in life ! 
Partner among their chequer'd scenes ! dear Wife ! 

December 22, 1859. 



* Originally, these lines were to be prefixed to the first 
draught of MagpfcetTg j$t00U. (See Introduction,) 



XXX11 



Eeeata, etc., in %K$$btXX% Matm. 

Page 9 ; Lightning-flies flash' d fitful : see page 374. 

— , 20 ; line 3 : for Ojibwa read Odahwa 
Pages 37, 41, 45 : read Shahwondayzy 

— 37, 41, 84, 146, 198, 220 : read Mudjiekeewis 
Page 58 ; line 3 : for lithe read little 

— 73 ; instead of the printed foot-note, read See pp. 267, 

284. 

— 80 ; line 6 : read maid, and how 

— 85 ; lines 5, 6 : after Keeweena read 

By that isle, whose beacon-tower 
Bids men, $c. 

— 101 ; foot-note: for IX. f. n. a read p. 293. 

— 102; grandfather: see page 382 

Pages 121, 122 : read Mish-aboo [KB.— The 'a' is an essential 

part of the word.] 
Page 121 ; foot-note r : strike out (see a. n. 77) 

— 127 ; last line read Jeebies 

— 140 ; last line, but one, of the text : read 

That path the pale chill ghosts aye tread 

— 160 ; foot-note e : read 1ST. p. 29 

— 161; as the forest king: see page 384. 

— 163; murmurous and tress of the dawn-star: seepage 384. 

— 167; Through the mirksome night: see page 374. 



I. 
MERES AND WOODS. 

1. 



■ Omitte mirari beatae 

Fumum et opes strepitumque Roraae." 



Dewy dun mists dimm'd the welkin ; 
Grey fog crept from oozy woodland. 

Early hied we from Toronto, — 2 
Sultry, dust-begrimed Toronto, — 
Joy'd with yearn'd for summer-ramble. 

Sev'n times clang'd each trusty clock-bell ; 
And July's ninth sun had risen. 

2 These numbers refer to the Appendix-notes, 

B 



MERES AND WOODS. 



2. 



" Here waving groves a chequer'd scene display, 
And part admit, and part exclude the day." 



Forth the snorting fire-steed a bore us, — 
By charr'd stump and stunted cedar, 
Sturdy wheat and tooth-like snake-fence, 3 
Through the grove's delicious coolness, 
Pine and hickory 4 , spruce and hemlock, 5 
Pink-ear' d stalk b and orange cluster, 
Waving flame-like, flaring blaze-like, 
Through the shades day never lightens. 

Thus we rose d o'er many a terrace 6 
Bathed by old Ontario's l billows, 
While, through slowly-rolling ages, 
Shrank the marge of his huge basin. 

a We left Toronto by the Ontario; Simcoe, and Huron Rail- 
road. The house we came from stood on the outskirts of the 
city, and in the 'second growth' of the forest, — amid "oozy 
woodland." 

b It looked like French withy. 

c This appeared to be the red-berried elder (Sambucus pitbens). 
For the extent of its 'habitat' see Rich. vol. ii. p. 297. 

d The highest grade is 60 feet to the mile. 



MEEES AND WOODS. 



3. 

" the poor brute's condition, forced to run 
Its course of suffering" 



As we fared, a vision met us 
Kuth and indignation rousing. 
Toil'd a horse in dreary treadmill, - 
Ever toil'd he, — while behind him 
Sped a sawing-apparatus. 



" "Qcpgot ol tx.vr6fjux.ro i &uov Sucotjcir uyaivoc,, 
Hd ocTn; trgo; ^m/jcoc vtoixTO S-ocv/luz l^io'deti." 

Welcomed then our eyes the fabric, 
Where, in iron trappings shrouded, 
Work'd the potent giant genie, 
Dusky Steam — a willing bond-slave, 
To the mind of man obedient, 
Work'd unwearied and insensate, 
Yet as fill'd with strength and motion, 
Yet as fill'd with understanding, 
Like the golden handmaids moulded 
Erst by cunnmg of the Fire-God. e 

e See Homer, II. xviii. 372-379. 
b 2 



MERES AND WOODS. 



4 Here hills and vales, the woodland and the plain, 
Here earth and water, seem to strive again ; 
Not, chaos like, together crush'd and hruis'd, 
But, as the world, harmoniously confused." 



On, through Newmarket, we wended — 
Ancient, well-clear'd, home-like township ; 7 

On, athwart full many a gully, — 
Cleaving hill in hill involved, 
Mass'd by Nature, as at random, 
In the gracefullest of tangles ; — 

Glode adown to Holland Landing, — 
Where slow crawl' d swart swampy river, 
Struggling through his clay-morasses, 
Logs, and snags, and cedar-islets ; — 

Paused where show'd Bell E wart's haven 
Her lone group of Norse-like shanties, 
Nigh the gleaming mere of Simcoe 8 
Scarce beruffled by a ripple. 



MERES AND WOODS. 



" the boat advanced 
Through crystal 'water, smoothly as a hawk " 

Then in joyaunce roll'd the noontide, — 
Isle and sky and bay and foreland 
Fleet flew by in dazzling tangle. 

Gracefully along the water 

TowVd the trees, or droop'd, or bent them 

As to bathe them 'neath the surface. 

Now some faery wood-wove jetty 
Would our lissome bright barque shoot to, — 
Pause, — then onward speed, rejoicing, 
As the may-fly, in the sunshine. 



" Territus exsurgit; fugit omnis inertia somnL" 

Glide we 'neath the uplifted drawbridge ; — 
Thread we dredg'd and stake-mark'd pathway 
Gut athwart the rushy shallows. 

Lo ! deep-dozing chipmunk 9 , squatting 
On his lone snag — rous'd and frighted 
b 3 



MERES AND WOODS. 



By fierce-hissing, yelling fire-boat, f — 
Bravely parts the mere's effulgence, 
To yon distant grove escaping. 



" a crystal mere 
Among steep hills and woods embosom'd ,! 



Beauteous then the unfolded prospect ; — 
Gay the Eed Man's sun-lit lodges 10 
Gleaming on the imbower'd mere-beach ; — 
Broad and fair shines Kootchi-tching Lake. 11 

9. 

«« Tibur supinum " 

Glistens, as we round lush foreland, 
'Neath yon pine-hung slope Orillia, — 
O'er, about her the dark wild-wood 
Crowning, clasping as fair girdle. 

f The Eed Man's name for the "White Man's 'steam-boat' 
(cf. C. p. 57). 



I. MERES AND WOODS. 

10. 
THE SUMMER STEAMER ON THE MERE. 

" placidum sulcabat iter " 

Bravely doth float tlie gold-prankt boat 

On the pearly, silvery mere : 
Bravely doth show her shape below 

In the pool so still and clear. 

Gaily doth glide the sweet summer-tide ; 

Merrily dance the blithe hours : 
While the nodding trees, gently waked by the breeze, 

Whisper welcome to Eden-bow 'rs. 



11. 

" the sun, declining, cast 
A slant and mellow radiance " 



Now — with prow revers'd, careering 
Southward, by the western margin, — 
Felt we more the landscape's beauty, 
Deepened by the dying daylight. 

Lovely lay the liquid mirror, 
Casting back the forest's shadow ; — 
b 4 



MERES AND WOODS. 

Daintily it waved and shimmer'd, — 
With its bowers and its flowers, — 
When a loon's s black neck would tower 
Ever and anon above it. 

12. 

" the still breast of a crystal lake '* 

Glode we thus by charming foreland, 
Glode we thus by charming island, 
To thy faery port, Bell Ewart ; — 

Whence the fire-car a whirl' d us, — bounding 
Through the gloom of grove primaeval 
Lighted by the flaring elder. 



13. 



" Itur in antiquam silvara " 

" mali culices ranaeque palustres 
Avertunt somnos." 



Now had passed bay-throned Barrie, 12 
Now the sunset's glories parted. 

s Also called the great northern diver ( Colymbus glacialis). 



MERES AND WOODS. 

Lo ! in mid career our swift steed, 
Swarthy, iron-harness' d Vapour, 
Halted, shatter' d and disabled — 
Halted, in the eerie gloaming, 
'Mid the many-cycled 13 greenwood. 

One pale star faint glimmer'd o'er us, 
Lightning-nies h nash'd fitful by us, 
Naught the grewsome stillness breaking, 
Save the croaking of the bull-frog, — 14 
Huge, dusk, yellow-eyed Dahinda, — 
Antiphonal, in the rank swamp. 
Sore we smarted with the stinging 
Of guerilla-like mosquito, 
Small, shrill, poison-spear' d Suggeema, — 
Dancing mazy, 'wildering war-dance, 
Hoarse, terrific war-cry singing, 
Venging hunting-ground invaded. 
Happy they who won the kindly 



h " Lightning-bug " ("bug" is = beetle) is the Yankee name 
for the fire-fly. 



10 MERES AND WOODS. 

Influence of gracious Slumber 
Through the long drear hours slow- dwindling, 
Ere beyond lone Nahdowa-Sahging 15 
Collingwood 16 could speed swift steam-car, 
And receive us worn and drowsy. 

Such the first day of our travel. 



II. 
THE EMBEYO CITY. 



" muros arcemque procul ac rara clomomm 
Tecta vident ; quae' nunc Romana potentia coelo 
iEquavit: turn res inopes Evandrus habebat." 



Ye who dwell in England's a London, 
'Mid the world- throng' d hive of Labour ! 
Ye who dwell in England's a Oxford, 
'Mid the princely halls of Learning ! 
Ye in Bladud's town luxurious 
Wheel'd to iEsculapian waters ! 

a Canada has her London and Oxford, and indeed her Windsor 
(two), and her Thames, — her 

"parvam Trojam, simulataqne magnis 
Pergama, et arentem Xanthi cogn omine rivum." 



12 THE EMBRYO CITY. II. 

Moving — easy, pensive, jaunty — 
In your homes of solid comfort, 
Stately leisure, snug refinement ! — 
Scarce, I ween, can ye imagine 
Collingwood 16 , the embryo-city, 
Village of no less ambition 
Than to be great mart of Commerce, 
'Tween Pacific and Atlantic. 

Since her birth in grove primseval 
Scarcely thrice hath flown our fleet orb 
Eound her sovran's throne of glory. 
What she shall be in the future, 
Let the future's self determine. 

On that fateful site beheld we 

Straggling, shapeless, haste-built cluster 

Of wood buildings quickly counted, 

Sparsely rear'd amid the dank swamp — 

Dwelling of the noisy bull-frog, 

Huge, dusk, yellow-eyed Dahinda, — 

'Mid the crumbling, wind-toss'd sand-heaps, — 



II. THE EMBRYO CITY. 13 

'Mid the chair' d stems of the greenwood, 
Towering — gloom- wrapp'd, weird-like, ghostly — 
Where the fire-path from Toronto, 
From Ontario and from Simcoe, 
Meets the Georgian Bay 19 of Huron. 78 



" raucis, 
Sole sub ardenti, resonant arbusta cicadis." 

Sauntering here b in garish noon-tide, 
Heard we what to English hearing 
Seem'd of burning wood the crackle. 

Much we marvell'd : " Can it well be ? 
No : it cannot — yes : it must be — 
Yonder grasshopper, careering 
In the sheen of summer-sunshine." 

Yes : it was that flying insect, 
But no grass-hopper of England. 

b We reached Collingwood on the 9th, and left it on the 
12th. Besides the stroll alluded to, we walked along the 
shores of the Georgian Bay, and made the acquaintance of 
many beautiful flowers. 



14 THE EMBRYO CITY. II. 

Brown its legs, and brown its body : 
Edged with hue of English primrose 
Were the winglets it expanded : 
And the sound it loves to utter 
Gives its name — the rattling locust. 17 



3. 

" O ! qui me gelidis in vallibus Haemi 
Sistat, et ingenti ramorum protegat umbra ! " 



From the blistering heat, sweet shelter 
Sought we in the welcome forest. 

" a living and rejoicing world.' 

There on moss-grown boughs reposed we, 
While above us and around us 
Gorgeous butterflies c were sweeping, 
Wheeling round huge trunk, and 'lighting 
On slim stem or broad leafs surface, — 
Waving, poising, opening, shutting, 
Now contracting, now expanding, 
All the dazzling glossy splendour 

c They looked very like the Camberwell Beauty (Vanessa 
Antiopa). 



II. THE EMBEYO CITY. 15 

Of their richly-burnish'd pinions, — 
Brown, with twofold white band circled, — 
Spots of azure-blue and yellow 
Lighting up gay tails and borders. 

'Neath us trail' d a winsome creeper : 18 
White as snow her downy petal, 
With faint, gentle blush beneath it ; 
Bright her dark-green leaf and varnish' d, 
As of holly or camellia. 

Sate we thus amid the verdure, 
'Neath lush canopy thick-plaited 
By the daedal hand of Nature ; 
View'd the squirrel springing fearless 
Through the mazes of the branches ; 
Drank the music of the wildwood, 
Murmuring o'er "us and around us 
As aerial ocean currents ; 
While the cow-bell's cheery tinkle, 
From the grass-paved highway wafted, 
Blent with glee of rapturous millions, 



16 THE EMBKYO CITY. II. 

Denizens of merry greenwood, 
Free from care and free from sorrow, 
In the joy of life exulting, — 
Blent with Nature's anthem surging 
Through the grandest of cathedrals. 



III. 
EARTH, WOOD, AND WATER/ 

l. 
The Embarkation. 

" Di, maris et terrse tempestatumque poteiites, 
Ferte viam vento facilem, et spirate secundi ! ' ' 

Forth the frail barque a Hath flown, 
Launch'd on wild seas unknown. 

Pow'rs of the deep ! 
Pow'rs of the air ! 
Sleep ! — oh ! in mercy, sleep ! 

Spare ! — oh ! spare ! 

a At 10.30 a.m., 12th July, 1858, the Scruee (an anagrani- 
matical nom de plume, which I take ' poetic licence ' to give the 
little steamer) started from Collingwood on her ' trial-trip/ as the 
first bearer of Her Majesty's mail to Kupert's Land. A crowd 
on the pier and on a large Chicago steamer cheered us as we 
went off. Captain Kennedy, who in 1851 and 1853 commanded 



18 EARTH, WOOD, AND WATER. III. 
2. 



1 Sollicitant freta caeca — " 



Chill the morn and leaden-clouded, 
When the Georgian Bay 19 received us 
On her broad and heaving bosom, — 
Bearing us from swamp and forest, 
From her embryo-port and city, 
From the rampart-ridge b that warded 
Waves and winds of western waters. 



" Aurum irrepertum — " 

Lofty, steep, and long the mountain, 15 
'Neath his mantle of deep greenwood 
(Quoth our gazing, gloating captain), 

expeditions sent out by Lady Franklin in search of her lost 
husband, had charge of the mail to the Eed Eiver colony, and 
proved a very entertaining companion. He left us at Grand 
Portage. 

b Sahgimah Qdahkahwahbewin = Sahgimah's watching-place 
(see a. n. 15), or the Blue Mountains (h. 1. 1500 ft.). 



III. EARTH, WOOD, AND WATER. 19 

'Neath the blue clay and the grey rock 
Stores of yellow gold concealing. 



" — rupes, vastum quse prodit in sequor, 
Obvia ventorum furiis, expostaque ponto,"— 

Now it met us, as we voyaged, 
Jutting northward with the bold bluff 
Known as Cabot's Head c to seamen, — 
Motley foliage rippling under, 
Glancing streams of limpid sapphire 
Coiling through the bowery tangle. 



Cheerly — 'mid the darkening ether, 
'Mid the amethyst-dyed turkis, 
'Mid the ebon -tinctured purple, — 

c Though the great Genoese, who set sail across the broad 
Atlantic, and would not put hack before reaching the West 
Indian islands, is rightly entitled the discoverer of the New 
World, yet, barring the dim annals of the Northmen, the great 
Venetian seems to have been the first discoverer of the main- 
land, when he sighted the coast of Labrador on Midsummer- 
day, 1497. 

c2 



20 EARTH, WOOD, AND WATER, ill. 

Gleam' d the ligh thouse -flame d , and sparkled 
Pale stars true to evening-muster, 
While the night-fire of the Ojibwa 48 
Shimmer'd on his holy island. 20 



6. 



" variis freta consita terris — " 

Silvery grew the sheen of Morning — 
G-old-wreath'd, amber-tressed Morning, 
Bending o'er the watery champaign, 
O'er the diamond-spangled azure, 
As we thridded emerald islets, e 
Nodding spruce and dancing aspen, — 

d Before we reached the Isle of Coves and its light, we had 
passed between two other islets of some elevation. That which 
was on our left is the subject of the following passage in Mr. 
A. Murray's " Keport of the Progress of the Geological Survey 
of Canada for the year 1847-8," p. 120, under the head Niagara 
limestones: " On some parts of the coast the rock is worn by 
the action of the water of the lake into remarkable pillar-like 
shapes [by the bye, I observed one at Cabot's Head, and I would 
compare the Sugar Loaf rock at Mackinaw]. This is parti- 
cularly the case at Flower-pot Island, where one column was 
observed resembling a jelly-glass, being worn small near the 
base, and enlarging symmetrically toward the top." We saw 



III. EAETH, WOOD, AND WATEK. 21 

Launch' d at length on the broad channel ? e 
Where La Cloche 21 and Mahnitoolin 20 
Eastward crowd their violet turrets, 
Where Saint Joseph's 25 blue shore shyly 
Peeps above the western mere-brim. 



" in parentis viscera intravit suse 

Deterior setas : eruit ferrum grave," 

Brightest blazed the Sun-God's splendour, 
Highest soar'd his lamp's effulgence, 
When we landed on the drear ridge, 22 

this one standing on the beach, and heard that there had been 
another, but it had fallen into the water. 

e We passed through the islets called ' The Ducks' at 5 a.m., 
proceeded along Great Mahnitoolin Island (1. 81m., a. 1600 sq.m.), 
and found our way into the North Channel (120 m. from \V. 
to E., and 25 m. from N. to S.) through Missisahging Strait, 
which divides the tail of that large crawfish-shaped island from 
Cockburn Island. This island (about 13 m. from W. to E., and 
9 m. from N. to S.) is thickly wooded, and only inhabited by 
the Ked Man. On its west, separated by a narrow channel, is 
Drummond Island (about 19 m. from W. to E., and 11 m. from 
N. to S.), a low, wooded, and unsettled island, belonging to the 
State of Michigan. C. (p. 27) speaks of it en passant as "in- 
teresting from its fossils." Good lithographic stone is said to 
have been found in it (see D., p. 114). 
c3 



22 EARTH, WOOD, AND WATER. III. 

Eidge strong-sinew' d limbs are delving, 
Tearing treasures, sacrilegious, 
From the thews of the Great Mother/ 
Rifling wealth throughout the ages 
'Neath Earth's solid ribs embedded. 

There the dull rock glistens gaud-like 
With the peacock's changeful plumage, 
With the tints the Day-King's finger 
Braids upon the sable rain-cloud. 
Bare and parch'dand stern the surface, 
Save where struggles forth dwarf herbage, 
Stunted raspberry 23 , starv'd whortle. 24 



" a/6/ Zapu^oio Xeyuxviiovroi; o6*?to6? 

Then thrice welcome waved the wild wood 
Of Saint Joseph's 25 teeming island, 
Fann'd by mild, mere-temper'd breezes, 
Scantly gemm'd with hut and i clearing,' — 
Tawny-arm'd squaws of the savage 

f See Lucretius, ii. 598-642. 



III. EARTH, WOOD, AND WATER. 23 

Paddling by the bowery border, 
Answering the plash of paddle 
With clear, merry-ringing laughter. 

9. 

" longos superant fiexus, variisque teguntur 

Arboribus," — 

Welcome the fair groves that tower 
O'er the river of Saint Mary — 26 
Broad stream studded with rock-islets, 
Islet bristling with lithe birch-stems, 27 
Army white-clad and green-crested. 

Stem we now a raving torrent, 
Struggling through his serried crevass, 
Writhing, coiling, plunging, darting, 
Likest Lerna's mangled hydra. 

Now with clinging slime s we wrestle ; 
Now ascend a rolling river 

b Alluding to Mud Lake (1. 10 m., b. 5 m.) and Lake George 
(1. 8 m., b. 5 m.). In Mud Lake " is found a great abundance 
and variety of fishes, and also the salamander, which the Indians 
call 'the walking fish' {Menobranchus), and which even to them 
is a great curiosity " (C. p. 29). 

C4 



24 EARTH, WOOD, AND WATEK. III. 

Shaking off his mere-like slumber, — h 
Slumber after his wild surges 
O'er the rocks that block his journey, 
Where, with many a bound and eddy, — 28 
As the giant of the ice- deep, 
Chief of all that swim wide ocean, 
Vex'd long while by venturous oarsmen, 
Stung by swarms of spears incessant, — 
Prone he speeds in furious onset, — 
Tossing high his showery foam-spray, 
Tossing high frail boat of birch -bark 27 
Guided by the dexterous paddle. . 

h For some distance below the Saut Ste. Marie rapids, 'the 
river (b. 1 m.) is particularly tranquil. 



IV. 

SUNSHINE ON KEETCHI GAHMI. 



l. 

" juventus 

Per medium classi barbara venit Athon." 

Morn had flamed forth o'er dun pine-ridge, 
Ere our barque had trod the channel 29 
Hewn by cunning of the White Man, — 
Path meet for his hugest fire-ship 
From the Leap 28 of Mary's Eiver, 26 
Leap of Keetchi-Gahmi Seebi, — 
To the White Man's Lake Superior, 31 
To the Eed Man's Keetchi Gahmi, — 33 
To the Eed Man's grand Great Water. 

2. 

" impiae 

Non tangenda rates transiliunt vada." 

Dainty tree-clad slopes 30 trip by us, 
Till the broad expanse is open'd 



26 SUNSHINE ON KEETCHI GAHMI. IV. 

With Mamainse's 30 blue heights northward,- — 
Mount o'er mount, — a pile fantastic, — 
Wan, blanch'd, shadowy, grisly phantoms, 
Frowning on the pigmy Pale Face, 
Who could dare with hissing fire-boat 
Break the sleep of Keetchi G-ahmi. 

t " Jam medio apparet fluctu nemorosa Zacynthos, 

Dulichiumque, Sameque, et Neritos ardua saxis." 

Verdurous Cahriboo a glides by us, — 
Glide thy lush steeps, Missi Picoo'tong ! 35 
Isle, whose bow'rs and land-clasp'd havens 
Seem to chide the sturdy woodman, 
Seem to beckon up the trader. 



" — ■— quid vesper serus vehat, .... 

quid cogitet humidus Austen 

Sol tibi signa dabit." 

Speeding on, we view'd the Sun-God 
In full sovran state descending, — 

a A low wooded island, so named from sixty cahriboos 
(see a. n. 34) having been killed on it by Captain M'Cargoe, 
who accompanied Bayfield. I presume the Cahriboo I. in the 
pulf of St. Lawrence owes its name to a similar occurrence. 



IV. SUNSHINE ON KEETCHI GAHMI. 27 

Many a flowing robe of crimson 
Shrouding his retiring splendour, — 
With their long, wreath'd skirts forewarning 
Wind and rain and furious tempest. 

So I 'boded, though full gaily 

Flew we 'neath the cloudless welkin, 

Fann'd by wings of strong southeaster, — 

Flew beneath the hollow welkin, 

While night's gathering gloom enwrapped us. 

4. 
The Water Wraith's Home. b 

** — humida regna." 
(1.) 

Far, far beneath the glassy pool, — 
That smileth false welcome to you who roam, 
That doth beguile 
With her sunny smile, — 
The Chief of the Water Wraiths doth rule, 
And hath his viewless home. 

b See a. n. 35, 36, 20, and, on the minerals, 32. 



28 SUNSHINE ON KEETCHI GAHMI. IV. 

(2.) : 

With his children fair, 
Of flowing hair, — 35 
He haunteth there. 

(3.) 
Far, far beneath the mountain-pine, — 

Beneath the summer-bloom, — 
Far, far beneath the murky mine, — 35 
Where never sinketh sounding-line, — 
Amid the grewsome sunless deep, 
Where all is still in trance-like sleep, — 
He dwelleth there, — 
Down in weird weedy coomb. 

(4.) 
Deep, deep below the rolling wave, 
He hath framed his wigwam in hollow cave. — 

Far, far below the fair free foam, 
Of the grim black ir'n 32 he hath scoop'd its dome. 
Each corridor — 
It is bravely dight 
With the ruddy copper's daedal ore, 



IT. SUNSHINE ON KEETCHI GAHMI. 29 

Shot with crimson, and pink, 

And purple, and blue, 
And the colours that link 
Them, of myriad hue. — 

The walls — they are bright 
With the motley bands 
Of the dazzling sands 
Of wondrous Schkuee-archibi-kung : — 32 
And above hath Missibeezi 35 hung, 
I 'wis, a cunningly-woven roof : 
No earthly hand hath wrought its woof ; 
It was brode not, I wis, by mortal wight ; 
It was brode by his children of flowing hair, 
By the Meemogovissiooees 35 fair. — 
There mingle 32 — by eye of man unseen — 
In magic maze, chlorastrolite 41 sheen, 
Violet amethyst c , malachite green, 
And silver white, 
And yellow gold : — 
There mingle, in many a beauteous twine, 
Gay rainbow- wreathed serpentine, 

c See VI. 2. 



30 SUNSHINE ON KEETCHI GAHMI. IV. 

Eed jasper, and moonstone's pearly shine, 
And ruby and sapphire crystalline, 
And the shimmer, I ween, 
Of gems untold : — 
And they scatter a dim, uncanny light 
Through the old-world hall of the Water Sprite. 

(5.) 

Woe to Ojibwa's frail canoe ! 

Woe e'en to White Man's fire-ship too ! 

To all, that dare 
Approach the Water Spirit's lair ! — 

With sudden 31 swell, 
With rock 37 , needle-like, fell, 

He guardeth it well. — 
He tolleth them on to a dreadful doom : 
He prepareth for them a darksome tomb. 

(6.) 
Deep under the mere, he abideth there : 
Yet he layeth above full many a snare. 

(7.) 
He hideth his toils in the fog's 31 thick gloom : 
But his voice 35 is heard in the breaker's boom. 
Beware ! Beware ! 



V. 

STORM, AND FOG, AND ROCKS. 



l. 

" Omnia turn pariter vento niinbisque videbis 
Fervere." 

Ever wilder, ever louder 
Koar'd the gale and boom'd the surges ; 
Ever heavier roll'd the frail barque, 
Plunging on athwart the billow, 
Scudding blindly by the swart Slate Isles, a 
While a foul fog's grisly meshes 
Ever folded her more closely, — 
As grey winding-sheet enshrouding 
Mortals destined to destruction 
By thy wrath, dread Missibeezi, 35 
Lord of restless Keetchi Gahmi ! 
By thy flowing-tressed children, 35 — 

a A bold precipitous group, lying some 10 miles off the north 
shore (see a. n. 32). 



32 STOKM, AND FOO, AND ROCKS. Y. 

Mortals, who durst seek the lifeless, 

Awe-fenced, man-shunn'd desolation 

Of your home in dreary northland, 37 

Of your northland haunts, rock-sentried, 37 

Terror of Ojibwa paddle, 

Terror e'en of White Man's fire-ship. 

2. 

" Certanec incertis affulgent sidera nautis." 

Storm-toss' d, wave-lash'd, fog-enshrouded, 
Rush'd we tow'rd the deadly ambush, 
Tow'rd the grim rocks of the northland. 
Fail'd us e'en the trusty compass, — 
Fail'd us in the hour of danger : 
Whether ( u guess'd" the 'wilder'd pilot) 
Drawn aside by iron cable, 
Lurking traitor in the doom'd barque, — 
Or charm-fetter' d by huge treasure b 
Hidden in some ponderous mountain 

b In more than one part of the S. W. shore of Lake Superior 
the compass is affected by iron in the green-stone (Bay.) — the 
predominant ' rock ' of the N. shore. 



STORM, AND FOG, AND ROCKS. 33 

Hanging haply, potent, o'er us. 
" Yet," said he, " it cannot so be ; 
For our barque must now be moving, 
In mid channel, through the vast trough 
'Twixt Isle Koyale 40 and the north shore." 



" Ipse diem noctemque negat discernere coelo, 
Nee meminisse vise media Palinurus in unda." 

Then had been right welcome pilot 
Kenning pathway, kenning peril : 
Then, I wis, right welcome captain, 
Who had ofttimes deftly guided 
Stout barque over billowy desert. 



" csecis erramus in undis." 

Rein'd is now our fiery courser ; 
Tardier moves the toiling engine ; 
Till slow-labouring wheels are silent. 

Southward, northward, eastward, westward 
Veers the prow, as bids her master's 
Careless or capricious fancy, — 

D 



34 STORM, AND FOG, AND ROCKS. 

Drifts on blindly now, abandon'd 
To the will of wind and current. 



" Turn rauca assiduo . . . sale saxa sonabant." 

Kingeth in our ears hoarse breaker, 
Roaring like the bay of bloodhound 
Waiting, eager, to devour us. 

Vainly flee we, hither, thither, 
From a foe too close besetting, 
Lower now — now fiercely clam'rous - 
Muttering his threats exultant. 



1 Involvere diem nimbi, et nox humida ccelum 
Abstulit." 



In the mist our straining eye-sight 
Had descried the Sun-God's pale face 
Ghastly-glimmering through his curtain, b 

» See VIII. 2. 



STORM, AND FOG, AND ROCKS. 35 

Through the doorway of his wigwam, 54 
While he struggled through the welkin, 
While he raised him in the welkin. 

Now. — as fast his orb descended — 
Hope, so fondly clutch'd, had fled us. 



"-— nimbosa cacumina montis," 

Strangely mingled joy and terror, 
When the fleecy curtain open'd, 
To reveal in deep blue crevass 
Murky dome — opaque, substantial, 
Grimly solid — hanging o'er us, — 
Likest those black spots mysterious 
Scann'd by Art-assisted vision 
In the dazing ball of noontide. 



" cunctis altior ibat " 

This — full truly " guess' d " the pilot - 
This the lordly, gloomy mountain, 

9 2 



36 STORM, AND FOO, AND ROCKS. 

For his mien and height majestic 

Meet — so deem'd the Black-Robe Fathers, 57 

Deem'd that company heroic — 

That should bear throughout the ages 

The grand name of their loved founder, 

Of Spain's saintliest, haughtiest noble. 



9. 



' Eripiunt subito nubes coelumque diemque 
Teucrorum ex oculis : ponto nox incubat atra, 



Preesentemque viris intentant omnia mortem.' 



Parted thus the shrouding Vapours, 
But to terrify the gazer 
With Ignace's 38 lurid summit, — 
Closed again around us, quenching 
Any spark of hope that linger'd, 
Filling with dismay all bosoms. 

10. 

" saxa latcntia — " 

Well the pilot knew the ambush'd 
Foes that lurk'd around that mountain ; 



V. STORM, AND FOO, AND ROCKS. 37 

Well he knew those rocks, that mangle 
Aught, within their jaws that ventures. 



11. 

V Collectasque fugat nubes— " 

Lo ! — while strain' d the baffled eyeball,- 
Lo ! — while throng' d the massy Vapours, 
Throng' d the sons of Shahwondahzy, c 
Dreamy, slumbrous Shahwondahzy, 
Throng'd the sons of wily Wahbun, — d 
While the growl of sullen breaker 
Mock'd his reeling, moaning victim — 
Came the mighty Mudjeykeewis, e 
Came the strong wind of the prairies. 

At his blast the foul dun Vapours 
Quail' d, and fled in pale confusion. 



c = the South-Wind. 

d = the East- Wind. 

e = the West-Wind. 

d 3 



38 STOEM, AND FOG, AND KOCKS. 

12. 

" solemque reducit." 

Then the red Sun glared out fiercely, 
With his blaze the rout completing. 

Then the shaggy 38 steep gloom' d by us : 
Then, before us, and behind us, — 
Then, beside us, and around us, — 
Bristled myriad 37 rocky islets. 

Then — though foes unseen were watching, 
Jagged rocks, their dark fangs rearing 
Skyward from the deep abysses — 
Sped we onward in the sunshine, 
In the radiance of the Sun-God, — 
Keckless — in our joyous wonder, 
At the " hairbreadth 'scape " surmounted,— 
Reckless — in our new-felt rapture — 
Of the perils yet surrounding. 



V. STORM, AND FOa, AND ROCKS. 39 

13. 

The Deliverance. 

" Laeta serenati facies aperitur Olympi." 
(1.) 

The frail barque is freed from the glamour that bound 

her: 
Dispers'd are the dun mists long wreathed around her : 
Dissolv'd is the spell 
Of the Water Wraith fell : 
For the good gale dehVrance hath brought her. 

(2.) 

The sky and the mere 
From their storm- whirls are clear, 
And greet with glad smile 
The Lord of the Day, 
After dreary exile 
In duresse vile, 
Ke-asserting his righteous sway. 
d4 



40 STORM, AND FOG, AND ROCKS. 

(3.) 

E'en the grim jealous Sprite 
In the genial light 
Forgetteth his spite, — 
And delighteth to play, 
Goodhumour'd and gay, — 
Showing ' Fly-away Capes ' f 
Of droll whimsical shapes 
Sound the bright beaming brow of Big Water. 



f The mock-height of the mirage (see a. n. 66) is called by 
the sailor ' Cape Fly-away.' 



VI. 

MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 



4 Albus ut obscuro deterget nubila coelo 
Saepe Notus,— " 



Sped we on by coast and island, 
Stemming e'en the stout, stern West- Wind, 
E'en the might of Mudjeykeewis, — 
Him who drove but now before him 
All the host of grisly Vapours, 
That had muster' d from the South-East, — 
From the realm of Shahwondahzy, 
Dreamy, slumbrous Shahwondahzy, — 
From the realm of wily Wahbun. 



42 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 



" Quo non arbiter Hadrise 
Major, tollere seu ponere vult freta." 



Thus by Spar Isle a 32 , and the brown crags, 
Where the violet-tinctured crystal b 
Gleams within her rocky casket, — 
Thus by Agate Cove 32 we voyaged. 

Seldom in the warmth of summer — 
" Guess' d " our pilot — had so mighty 
Gale career'd o'er Keetchi Gahmi, 
O'er the Red Man's grand Great Water. 

3. . 

" Terribiles visu formse — " 

Dimlier ever tow'r'd behind us 
Haught Ignace's cloud-throned grandeur : 

a Also called Fluor Isle. 

b The amethyst (see a. n. 32). 



YI. MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 43 

Larger loom'd in farmost distance 
Blue-hued form the headlands over, 
As some storm-betokening c cloudlet. 

Grim the shape it wore and aspect— 
Hand with clench'd palm, broad and shadowy, 
From the mere, in sign of anger, 
Eais'd to scare us and repel us. 

While we near'd, lo ! spread a mountain, — 
Thunder-Cape 42 its name of terror. 



c C. (p. 78) writes: — -"A dim, majestic outline in the far 
distance, seeming only to divide one part of the sky from the 
other, our voyageurs declared to be Thunder Cape, seventy or 
eighty miles off." Though in that region distant heights are 
sometimes remarkably clear, I think this must have been an 
exaggeration. "We were, I should say, no more than forty 
miles off, or so. 

One was reminded of the report of Elijah's servant, on 
his return from a seventh ascent to the top of the Carmel head- 
land: — "Behold there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like 
a man's hand" (1 Kings, xviii. 44). I have seen this "storm- 
betokening cloudlet" on the Laurentian lakes. 



44 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 



4. 



" Hie Creator 
Atque Opifex Rerum " 



Nigh us, lo ! a group of green heights, 
So grotesquely ranged by Nature, 
That the visionary 74 savage, 
Paddling over broad Big Water, 
Sees there Ninnibohzhoo 39 , the mighty, 
Eesting from creative labours. 39 

Here the wide world's mightful maker, 
Here — his work stupendous ended — 
Laid him down, — here lieth ever. 
Yon round knoll his head ; yon broad slopes 
Show his noble breast distended ; 
Yon fair, goodlier-swelling twin-hills d 
Are his giant-knees rear'd upward, 
While he taketh deep still slumber, 
Slumber to be broken never. 



d The voyageurs call these Les marnmelons, and Bay. has them, 
in his chart, as The Paps. 



VI. MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 45 

5. 

" Insula inexhaustis Chalybum generosa metallis." 

Tow'rd the realm of Shahwondahzy, 

Tow'rd the region of the South- Wind, 
Stretch'd a sun-lit azure island, 
Worthy of her title royal. 40 

Rich her treasure, rock- embedded ; 40 
Rare her stranded pebble's 41 beauty, 
Sheen with gayer, lovelier lustre, 
'Neath the shy, soft, gentle kisses 
Of blithe, fondling, fair-curl'd wavelet, 
'Neath the impassion' d, wild embraces 
Of swift-springing, clutching billow. 

6. 

" — .Acroceraunia. " 

Round the long, low, tongue-like foreland, e 
By the long, jagg'd inlet f sped we, 

e Point Porphyry. 
f Black Bay. 



46 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 

Where the black stream s rolls his torrent 
From vast bogs and dank dells northward, 
Through the black gulf f to the blue lake : 

By the awful Thunder-Mountain 42 

Veiling half the vault of heaven 

With his grand, majestic ridges, — 

Eidges robed with feathery greenwood, 

Waving spruce and fluttering aspen, — 

Kidges crown'd with wind-dwarf d wild wood, — 

Eidges knit with flaring red rock, — 

Fierce, bare, rugged, palisade -like, — 

Like some old-world fortress towering 

O'er that leafy bank gigantic, 

Gnaw'd h by surf-fringed pool abysmal. 

* Black Eiver. F. and "W". give a view of its wild scenery. 

h Since composing this, I have found K. (p. 2) stating that 
the Eed Man's term for a foreland is "Shaguamikon, which 
means, literally, 'something gnawed on all sides.' " The subject 
of this remark is an island in the south-west of L. Superior. 
The Eed Man's name for it was rendered La Pointe by the 
French missionaries of the seventeenth century. I suspect that 
the island has been "gnawed" off from the mainland, like Long 
Point I. on L. Erie, and Gibraltar Point on L. Ontario, now an 
island (a. n. 2). 



VI. MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 47 

7. 

4 " aetherii .... ardua montis." 

Well might fancy 42 of awed savage, 
Creeping by in tiny shallop, 
Deem, if child of man should haply 
Scale that welkin-piercing headland, 
Turn him, 'mid the reeling mountains, 
Thrice on dizzy brink terrific, — 
Gazing on the swimming ether, 
On the giddy, staggering wild woods, 
On the boundless waste of billows, 
On the gulf 1 down-beckoning under, — 
Him shall hollow voice of Pauguk J 
Never call in gloomy night-time, 
Him shall glaring eye of Pauguk 
Never maze in breathless horror, 
Him shall rude, cold hand of Pauguk 
Never rest on terror-frozen, 
Hurry, — shuddering, pale, and shivering, — 
To the place of bloodless phantoms. 

1 Its width is o m., its depth more than 180 f. 
i = Death. 



48 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 



" Provehimur pelago vicina Ceraunia juxta." 

Glode we o'er tlie shadowy alley, * 
By the awful Thunder-Mountain, 
Glode betwixt him and that other 
Stately weather-splinter' d warder, 43 
Guarding from the sweeping West- Wind 
Yon sweet, slumber-outstretch' d inlet. k 



9. 

" Hinc atque hinc vastse rupes, geminique minantur 
In ccelum scopuli : quorum sub vertice lat& 
iEquora tuta silent. Turn silvis scena coruscis 
Desuper, horrentique atrum nemus imminet umbra.' 



Say, majestic old-world brethren, 
Bulwarks twain of lakelet tender, 
Lightning-scarr'd, storm-furrow' d giants, 
Soaring o'er the puny fire-boat ! 
Tell your wonder-teeming story : 

k The greatest length of Thunder Bay, from S. W. to N. E. 
(its head), is 32 m, ; its breadth, from Thunder Cape to the 
mouth of the Fort William branch of the Kahministikwoya, is 
about 14 m.; its depth is more than 180 f. at the S. E. entrance, 
and from 60 to 120 in many parts of the inlet. 



TI. MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 49 

Whether whilom broad Big-Water 

Burst your barrier adamantine, 

Hurl'd by whirlwind from the southeast : — 

Or huge horde of ermined mountains, 
Dun-grey, azure -gleaming mountains, 
Wanderers from the eerie ice-world — l 
KolTd by grand all- whelming deluge, 
Blown by strong gale of the northwest — 
Bore down on it, crash' d, and sunder' d : — 

Or, in throes Titanic heaving, 

Mother Earth your stout mass severed, — 
f 

Oped gash, gory, deep, eternal, 
Channel meet for damm'd-up ocean, 
Spread long while o'er peak and dingle, 
Bounding then with deafening bellow 
Through the cleft to Keetchi Gahmi — 

1 Such was the appearance of the icebergs, which, in various 
sizes and shapes, met our eyes during the greater part of the 
16th day of August, 1859, after emerging from the Gulf of St. 
Lawrence through the Strait of Belle Isle. 



50 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 

Left you standing through the ages, 
Mocking Time, the all-destroyer, 
Deathless janitors appointed 
To the queen of saltless waters. 



10. 



:t Vim cunctam atque minas perfert ccelique marisque ; 
Ipsa immota manet.'* 



Lo ! a third 43 , — like haughty chieftain 
Towering in his lonely grandeur 
O'er the surging hosts around him, 
All his broad breast grimly gleaming, 
All his steely breast-plate beaming, 
In the silvery sheen of noon-day, 
All his mantle's sombre green'ry 
Drooping o'er his stalwart shoulders ; — 
Like fair Elbe's right kingly castle, 43 
Hold that erst could scorn defiant 
E'en the Corsican world-victor, 
Smiling from her maiden eyrie 
On the flash and bray of cannon. 



VI. MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 51 

11. 

" mountains, bare, or clothed with ancient woods, 
Surrounded us : and, as we held our way 
Along the level of the glassy flood, 
They ceased not to surround us,— change of place, 
From kindred features diversely combined, 
Producing change of beauty ever new." 

Gaily clove we those still waters, 
Gaily gazed on mount and islet, — 
Islets m flooded by the glories, 
Islets vying with the glories, 
Of the fading, flushing sun-light, — 
Each like gleam of parting rainbow, 
Or some jewel by the craftsman 
Deck'd with stones of every colour:— 
Birch, fir — greenery light and sombre — 
Spreading, tapering, quivering leafage — 
Lissome white stem, sturdy brown stem — 
Kock all orange, pink, and purple. 44 

12. 

" ingentem ex sequore lucum 
Prospicit. Hunc inter fiuvio Tiberinus amaeno, 
Vorticibus rapidis et multa flavus arena, 
In mare prorumpit" 

Thus we glode, till, lo ! — reposing 
'Neath yon towery ridge's shelter, 59 
m Welcome Islands (see a. n. 32). 



52 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 

'Tween us and his trailing red cliff, 
'Tween us and his dark-stoled grove-slopes, 
Blooms a maze of dainty verdure, 
Cheery, shimmery-tressed offspring 
Of swart 46 Kahministikwoya, 46 — ■ 
Here his rambles ending, wedded 
To the laughing Bay of Thunder. k 

Trim gay tilth on yon savannah 
Sure betrays the "White Man's fastness 
Hid behind that tangled delta. 



13. 



" avidi con j unger e dextras 
Ardebant." 



There our goal. We sink the anchor, 
Flaunt on high Britannia's standard, 
View her red cross flame responsive 
Over Pale Face 47 and Ojibwa, 48 — 
Greeting voiceless, yet deep-thrilling, 
As 'tween brethren in the Far- West, — 
Greeting voiceless, yet deep-thrilling, 



VI. MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. 53 

As erst 'tween the Hebrew brethren, 
Those long-parted Hebrew brethren, 
On the drear, wide, tangled moorland, 
On the wild, lone Syrian highland. 11 

14. 

" Est in secessu longo locus." 

Loosed is then the long-leash' d pinnace, 
Bearing o'er the tawny shallows 
Ambassage from Hohsheylahga ° 45 
To the lords p of Arctic woodland, 
To her kinsmen o'er the billow. 

Mid the darkening yellow gloaming 
Stout oars grope through sullen black ooze, 
Through weed-tangle, by the lank rush, 
By sweet tamarak's 49 bristling coppice, 
Up the gloomy shrub-hedged river : 

n See Dr. Stanley's Sinai and Palestine, chap. viii. 
= Canada (see a. n. 45). 
p The Hudson's Bay Company^ 
e 3 



54 MOUNTAINS AND ISLANDS. VI. 

Till our prow rests by the green sward, 
Till a warm grasp bids us welcome, 
Through the quaint-wrought old watch-portal 
Bids us welcome to Fort William. 47 



VII. 

PALE FACE AND RED SKIN. 



■ Ne vetus indigenas nomen mutare Latinos, 
Neu Troas fieri jubeas, Teucrosque vocari ; 
Aut vocem mutare viros, aut vertere vestes." 



I. 

THE OASIS IN THE FAR-WEST. 

'Tween bosky flat and delta-isle 

Slow rolls, a-near to broad Big- Water, 

The flood 46 that, many a winding a mile, 
A thousand moorland rills has brought her. 

From many a tarn and wild morass, 

From that dread leap 60 men view with wonder, 
Those long-meandering waters pass 

Full gently to the Bay of Thunder. 

■ Kahniinistikwoya is, according to Rich.., = the river that 
rims far about (see a. n. 46). 

e4 



56 PALE FACE AND RED SKIN. VII. 

Here where swart stream weds fair white mere, 
The North- West 47 empire flow Yd and faded : 

Held they high council 47 whilom here, — 
Here till'd, Macadamized 47 , and traded. 

Here, in their wild Hesperian home, 
' A happy family ' view'd we blended. 

Lords of the goodly river-loam b , 

Kind earth b and teeming tree b they tended. 

Paddled John Bull with ' La belle France ' 

O'er sullen stream and sunny mere. 
Tuned to the birch-barque's merry dance, 

Blent "rosier blanc " c with " Cheer, boys ! cheer ! " 



b " The soil is a light sandy loam, reposing on yellowish 
clay" (E. E., p. 199). "The soil is an alluvial formation of 
deep sandy loam, very fertile. . . . The land, though poorly 
farmed, yields very bountifully. . . . Their pears are excel- 
lent, and vegetables of every description most magnificent " 
(a. n. 46). 

c K. (p. 258) gives a specimen " of this endless chanson a 
Vaviron" as he heard it, prefacing it with saying that "in the 



VII. PALE FACE AND RED SKIN. 57 

Paddled and dug with tall half-breed 
The thick-set son of Scottish Highland, 

first verses the poet describes how he went walking in the forest 
in melancholy mood. 

" Mais je n'ai trouve personne (bis and pause), 
Que le rossignol, chantant la belle rose, 

La belle rose du rosier blanc ! 
Qui me dit dans son langage (bis and pause), 
Marie-toi, car il est temps, a la belle rose, 

A la belle rose du rosier blanc ! 
Comment veux-tu que je me marie (bis and pause) avec 
la belle rose. 

La belle rose du rosier blanc ? 

" Mon pere n'est pas content (bis and pause) de la belle rose, 

De la belle rose du rosier blanc ! 
Ni mon pere nani ma mere (bis and pause) ; 
Je m'en irai en service pour la belle rose, 

La belle rose du rosier blanc ! 
En service pour un an (bis and pause), pour ma belle rose, 

Ma belle rose du rosier blanc." 

ik The song," he adds, " goes on in this way for an endless 
period. A person reading it may think it wearisome ; but any 
one voyaging to its tune will think otherwise. It is a slight 
variation for the ear, that a solo singer utters the few words, 
which give the story a shove onwards, while the others join in 
chorus with ' La belle rose,' &c. " 

This song is referred to in the following passages of Bal. : — 
. . . " in ten minutes our tents were down and ourselves in 



58 PALE FACE AND RED SKIN VII. 

The Viking's undegenerate seed, 

The blithe child of the Emerald Island, 

Stout ruddy Teuton, lithe Orkneyan : — 47 

1 A happy family ' of Pale Faces, 
Cadets of best blood European, 

They dwelt in lone Far- West oasis. 

And, opposite the snake-fenced 3 land 

That smiled with European tillage, 
A wandering Ojibwa 48 band 

Had founded what we '11 term a village. 

2. 
THE COWS. 

The Eed Man's lush green isle to browse — 
Though not urged on by man or boy — a 

Well-order'd company of cows 
Swims o'er the Kahministikwoya. 

the canoe, bounding merrily up the river (Winnipeg Eiver) ; 
while the echoing woods and dells responded to the lively air of 
'Kose blanche' " (p. 223). "Away we went then — in our 
little egg-shell of a canoe — over the clear lake (Thunder Bay), 
singing 'Kose blanche' vociferously" (p. 255). 



VII. PALJE FACE AND RED SKIN. 59 

Thither each morning without fail 

They walk down, fifty in a file, — and, 

With only nose and horns and tail 
Above the water, reach the island. 

And — after aldermanic i feed ' — 

At milking-time, without a shiver 
Upon the brink, they quit the mead, 

And, homeward, plunge across the river. 

As the Bostonian d , whom I cite, 

Sagely observes, this " evolution " — 

d "As the pasturage on the other side of the river is much 
better than about the Fort, these cows swim across regularly 
every morning and back in the evening, a distance of two or 
three hundred yards (Professor Hind says 400 f.). I was much 
surprised the morning after our arrival, when the cattle were 
let out of the yard, to see a cow walk down and deliberately 
take to the water of her own accord, the whole drove following 
her, swimming with only their noses, horns, and tails above 
water — an evolution so out of the usual habits of the animal, 
that I could account for it only by supposing it to be an ancient 
custom, established with difficulty, at first on the strong com- 
pulsion of necessity, and subsequently yielded to, from force of 
example, by each cow that successively entered the herd" 
(C. p. 83). Cf. B. E. p. 199. 



60 PALE FACE AND BED SKIN. VII. 

"Out of their usual habits " i quite ' — e 
Would seem " an ancient " ' institution.' e 

" Necessity," thy " strong compulsion " 

(Necessitati nulla lex) 
Conquer' d, he ' guess' d,' their strong revulsion 

From risking in the flood their necks : 

And then each new cow, in due course, 

Follow' d her predecessor's leading, 
Sway'd by " Example's" gentle " force," — 

And by the prospect of good feeding. 

3- 

THE DEPUTATION AND OUR HOST. 

Three of us — now I beg to state — 

Had on that summer- evening dewy 
Gone off ashore, though somewhat late, — 

A deputation from the Scruee. 

e The Yankees have a peculiarly emphatic use of the word 
1 quite ; ' and in Yankee-land every thing is an * institution,' 
from Congress down to stewed oysters, while the word is freely 
used as an equivalent to " custom." 



VII. PALE FACE AND RED SKIN. 61 

We were a motley deputation, — 

The little Scruee's little master, 
A Georgian man of mensuration, 

And the adventure's poetaster. 

By steady, stalwart strokes convey'd, 
We cross' d the sedgy, muddy shallows, 

We glode beneath the larch's shade, 
Beside the alders and the sallows. 

Then halt we by the treeless strand, 

Where worn by ' voyageurs ' the grass is : 
The boat is tied : we tread the land : 
Each welcomed by warm shake of hand, 
The deputation onward passes. 

We move on with our genial host, 

The official of an inland station, 
With whom official on mere- coast 

Had made exchange of habitation. 

As country-parson doth attain 

Salubrious shore and bracing waters, 



62 PALE FACE AND BED SKIN. VII. 

Preaching his sermons " o'er again," 
And, haply, { getting off ' his daughters. 

Our little cavalcade moves on : 

' Tis nothing pompous or resplendent, — 

We three, and he of Neepigon f , 

Pro tern. Fort- William's Superintendent. 

4- 
THE FORT, AND ITS PAST. 

We four move onward to the i Fort,' — 
A place carv'd out of forest-tangle, — 

Coastguard-like dwellings round a court, — 
Grass-grown, yet college-like, quadrangle. 

To see the likeness, one, however, 

Eequired thy ' bump,' Imagination : 
For in the New World view'd I never 

Abode in such dilapidation. 

f There is a H. B. C. post of that name near Lake Neepigon 
(see a. n. 69). 



VII. PALE FACE AND BED SKIN. 63 

What with its general aspect strange, 
What with old-fashion 7 d barbican, — a 

Place smacking of " the moated grange " 
The poets link with " Mariana." 

The court — not so with grass o'ergrowji, 
As turn'd to grassy field — look'd antique ; 

The ' Fort ' — though built of wood, not stone — 
Was old, for aught that's Trans- Atlantic. 

Nor only had Time on it cast 

The blight he will on all that's mortal ; 

But e'en from heav'n the lightning-blast 

Had blacken 'd, scarr'd, and seam'd its portal. 

Yet 'twas a famous place of yore ; 

And, in the long-forgotten story 
Of rival Companies at war, 47 

'Twas of some note, though no great glory. 

Scarce show'd the Chief of Hudson's Bay 47 
His field-piece o'er the river- water, 



64 PALE FACE AND BED SKIN. Til. 

When the great ' house across the way ' 

1 Show'd the white flag,' and sued for quarter. 

Yet 'twas a glorious place of old : 

Her banquet-hall, they say, was splendid ; 

Innumerable were, I'm told, 

The lacqueys who her feasts attended. 47 

Though now her grandeur's shorn, alas ! — 

Hearty her welcome : on the table 
Beam'd cups and amphorae of glass, — 

Sherry and port on either label. 



THE FIRST DELIVERY OF HER MAJESTY'S 
MAIL. 

Ere my Muse quits Fort William's pale, 
To mention she must not forget. Her 

Britannic Majesty's first Mail 
Deliver'd duly was — one letter ! 



VII. PALE FACE AND RED SKIN. 65 

The captain's solemn air our sense 

Of what is term'd ' the ludicrous ' smote on. 

This note too — brought at some expense — 
Was for a man at Michipicoton. 35 

I should explain that, as the isle, 

So is a ' Fort J 35 upon the shore worded. 

Back then, some three or four hundred mile, 
This precious note had to be L forwarded? 

6. 
OUR RETURN TO THUNDER BAY. 

The moon's fair orb has risen high : 
Her beams on larch and aspen quiver ; 

Her lustre floods the violet sky, 
And floats upon the swarthy river. 

Beneath the golden-hued twilight 

We'd started in the evening dewy : 
'Twas fully ten o'clock at night 

When we regain'd the little Scruee. 
F 



66 PALE FACE AND BED SKIN. VII. 

7- 

THE PAPPOOSE. 

But, ere to roost my Muse and I 

Are gone, she must describe — I tell her — 
In decent rhymes the little l guy ' 

That came alongside our i propeller.' s 

'Twas what the Eed Skins term i pappoose,' 50 
Swathed up in canvass, tied with lacing, 

By no means Coan vest or loose, 
In fact a chrysalis-like casing. 



BRAIDING AND PLAITING. 

I cannot urge her more to sing : 

She is so very tired and jaded : 
She droops her head upon her wing : 

Or she would tell you how were braided 

e The Trans-Atlantic name for a screw-steamer. 



VII. PALE FACE AND RED SKIN. 67 

The Eed Men's moccasins 53 , and their 

Trowsers, — the pattern that the braid is — 

And their mode of plaiting the ' back hair ' — 
How this would interest the ladies ! 



VIII. 

THE KAHMINISTIKWOYA. 



" undam levis innatat alnus." 

'•A populous solitude — — " 

Once again I left our moorings : 
'Twas the morrow's sun beheld me 
Borne in faery birch-barque 51 over 
Swarthy 46 Kahministikwoya. 46 

Strange, as notes of birds, the voices 
Of the boys quick paddle plying, 
Of the Eed Man's hardy children. 

Blithely danced we o'er the ripple, 
By the flood's gay marge, embower'd 
In the tangle of the wild wood, 



VIII. THE KAHMINISTIKWOYA. 69 

Starr'd with lustrous flowers, that bent them 
To the breeze that swept the may-fly, — 
To the breeze that fann'd the wavelet, 
Eock'd the languid-lolling lily. 

Gorgeous butterflies wheel'd o'er us : 
Darted dragonflies around us, — 
Clad in coats of glossiest velvet, 
Dyed with gleaming green and azure, — 
Floating on their gauzy pinions, 
Pinions white or tipp'd with ebon, — 
Floating in the golden ether. 

2. 

" Atque humiles habitare casas et figere cervos." 

Lo ! — as parts the dusky river, 
Clove by gaily-flashing paddle, 
Eent by glancing keel of birch-barque, 
Riv'n with trail of whirling diamonds — 
Lo ! — as winds the slow swart river — 
Opes a green sward to the sunshine. 



THE KAHMINISTIKWOYA. VIII. 

Cluster here, lo ! Eed folk's wigwams : 
There the lone, sequester' d campment 57 
Of the holy Black-Eobe Fathers, 57 
By yon simple wood- wrought chapel, 57 
Where are shrined the glistering symbols 
Of their mysteries pomp-bedizen'd ? 
Of their soul-enthralling worship. 

Forest-tree roots 52 deftly cleaving, 
Deftly twining through the white bark, 27 
Chatting merrily, — the matrons 
Sit together nigh the tent-door. 

Framed of stakes the old-world dwelling. 
Stakes that bend as sheaves of autumn, 
Meeting, crossing, at their summits, 
With the sheltering bark 27 around them, 
With warm blanket-rag — for doorway, 
Window, curtain, and portcullis — . 
Hung before the narrow entrance. 

Lifting that rude screen, I enter' d, 
Bending low my head to enter. 



VIII. THE XAHMmSTIK-WOYA. 71 

Then was I 'ware of swarthy maiden, 
Seated, busy in her loneness, 
In quaint fantasy embroid'ring 
With gay bead and quill of hedgehog 
Moccasins 53 — love-token a haply 
For the maiden's Neenimohshi, 
For some gallant of the wild wood, — 
Moccasins, — to bear him bravely 
On the flying red deer's traces. 53 

Neat the wigwam 54 : compass' d neatly 
Sheets of birch-bark 27 dusky matting, — 55 
On the wall the sheets of birch-bark, 
On the wall the white l apakwas,' — 27 
1 Keetchi-Gahmi washk ' 55 beneath them, 
'Neath them bulrush 55 of Big Water. 
Neatly lay round dusky embers 
Keetchi Gahmi's dusky bulrush, 
Keetchi Gahmi's goodly bulrush, — 
Ripe, and boil'd, and dyed, and plaited, — 

a Since this was written, I have found K. (p. 252) speaking 
of a daughter of the Eed Man as " busily working moccasins 
for " her Neenimohshi ( = sweetheart, cf. IX., f. n. b). 

f4 



72 THE KAHMINISTIKWOTA. VIII. 

Steep'd in dewy mists of night-time. 
Neatly lay the dusky bulrush 
Eound the dusky, grisly embers, 
Embers heap'd beneath the cauldron, — 
Dusky, murky cauldron, hanging, 
Where the dun grey smoke might struggle 
Heav'nward through the tangled chimney, 
From dark den to sheeny ether,— 
Hanging, with the fish beside it,— 
Dainty white-fish b , deer of water, — b 
Dried, and ready for the broiling. 
Pendent on the circling tent-wall, 
Droop' d the hide and tail of musquash, — 56 
Gleam'd the purple of the iris, 
Whence are wrung the healing juices 
Mightful in the hour of sickness. 5l 



" Silva vetus stabat, nulli violata securi.** 

Forth from Eed Man's dusky wigwam, 
From fair glade, from lowly chapel, 
» See XI., and a. n. 77. 



VIII. THE KAHMINISTIKWOTA. 73 

From the kindly Black-Kobe Fathers, 

From their hospitable campment, 

From the brimming bowl of bass-wood, c 

China tea, Hesperian maple, 58 

Welcome to the thirsty stranger, — 

Glode we onward o'er the swart flood, 

O'er the brown stream's spangled ripple, — 

Glode we through the serried greenwood, — 

Glode we, where the red bluff's 59 war-paint 

Flared amid his leafy mantle, 

Shone through grim trees myriad-muster'd, 

Shone through throngs of lithe- spired larches, 

Sturdy pine-trunk, lissome spruce-stem, 

Struggling upward, soaring upward, 

From the gloom of grove primaeval, 

To the genial warmth of Summer, 

To the glory of the welkin. . 

These ancient vessels are introduced in Hiawatha, xxii. 



IX. 



A Story told in 



Stately and gay, I wis, are Eed Man's woods ; 

Full gracefully their lush broad branches twine : 
And sovran in those old-world solitudes, 

Lordly and tall, tow'rs Eed Man's goodly pine. 
Like host on war-path, those stout red stemn shine, 

While their green plumes nod in the evening breeze ; 
'Mid the dark grove they stand in serried line : 

And thither oft the wondering Eed Man sees 
Skip, at the dusk of eve, the wee Pukwudjinees. 61 



ix. Utelmafo mil tfie puftfoutrjmets. 75 



Their faery babe-like tracks are clear to view 

Around the tarn the sandy 62 hills aboon : 
And fisher, sitting in his lone canoe 

At close of slumbrous summer-afternoon, 
Hath often seen beneath the rising moon 

Their playful pranks, and mark'd their careless 
glee, 
And heard their child- like merriment ; but soon, 

Like timid fawns, the little people flee 
To their own Spirit-Wood 62 and their loved " green- 
wood tree." 



SB. 

And eke in freaks of mischief take delight 
This tiny folk, — but all, I wot, mere play : 

Their hearts for aught of malice far too light,- 
Ever good-humour'd, frolicsome, and gay. 

They hide them in the murky grove by day, 



76 Itolmafo antr t^e ^uWaulijmtes. ix. 

And come abroad only at midnight gloom : 
Then is the fisher's paddle stol'n away, 

Then spoil of mere and wood; — none knows by 
whom: 
Then from the hunter's cap is pluck'd the feathery 
plume. 



And whilom e'en the daughter of a chief 

Durst those blithe fays allure their own to be. 
Ah ! deep and long, I ween, was Red folk's grief : 

Ever from mortal ken had vanish' d she. 
And beautiful, though a slender-shaped and wee, 

The girl they carried to their weird retreat : 
Bonnie amid the dance her bright black ee, 

Bonnie the flashes of her " fairy feet." 
And Leelinaw b the name borne by this maiden 
sweet. 



a The Eed Man admires large proportions in woman. 

b Leelinaw is a .get form of Neenizoo ( = my dear life, and 
answering to Byron's fy^ (jlov), a fond mother's name for her 
baby. 



ix. lUtltnafo antr tijt ^uWrm&jmees. n 



Pensive from tender infancy her mind ; 

Sweet melancholy mark'd the little maid : 
And oft, beneath the bowery boughs reclined, 

In those dark haunts the livelong day she stay'd. — 
Nor was a mother's chiding voice obey'd, 

Warning her, if those gloomy sunless trees 
She sought so oft, and in their eerie shade 

Thus mused and dream' d, that sure, one day, would 
seize, 
And take her to themselves the wee Pukwudjinees. 



And then untried, I wis, no human art, 

No woman's wile by the fond anxious dame. 

Full well she knew, how melts the coldest heart 
Beneath the warmth of Hymen's constant flame. 

And — though no blooming youth — in quest of game 
Well-skill'd the wight she chose, and sure his bow : 

Nor in the sterner deeds of war his name 



78 HeeKnafo antr tfje 3Puftfouirj{nte& ix. 

Inglorious ; for he a scalp could show, 
Torn, as is Eed Man's wont, from head of vanquish' d 
foe. 



Sigh'd she : " To the Great Spirit far above 

Slaughter and bloody scalps cannot be dear ; 
Nor should pure minds such grewsome doings love." 

So to his praises deaf the maiden's ear. — 
Then from her tender eyne would drop a tear. 

She thought of those wee footprints on the sand, 
Beneath the greenwood, round the mountain-mere : — 

For the fair clime, whence came the sprightly band, 
She yearn'd :— no wars, no cares e'er vex'd that happy 
land. 



Much her sage parents mock'd those fancies wild, 
Shadows of girlish melancholy bred : 

And she grew silent, and serenely smiled : 
And so the eve came on when she should wed. 



ix. Uttltnafo anO ti)e ^uftfouiyfttms. 79 

Her finest gear she donn'd, and, for her head, 
Wreathed in her raven tresses pale woodbine, 

And yellow 63 violets, and roses red, 

And trillium c chaste, and dainty columbine : 

But chiefest waved and gleam'd the tassels of the pine. 



One boon she craved : — to her dear Spirit- Wood, 

Deck'd with the finest gear, the fairest flow'r, 
She fain would bid farewell : then in blithe mood 

She would resign her to a husband's pow'r, 
And gaily would she enter nuptial bow'r. — 

Long in her father's lodge bridegroom, and squaw, 
And kinsfolk waited her : from hour to hour 

They waited her in vain : no mortal saw 
Ever thy dainty form since then, sweet Leelinaw ! 

c The trillium has a triple leaf, a triple calix, and a triple 
blossom. The smaller varieties {cemuum and erectum) are 
either clove-coloured or white. The Large White Trillium 
(grandiflorwn) is that referred to above. Its lovely blossom 
droops most gracefully from the stem. 



so Heeltnafo an& fyt ^ufefouirftnees. ix. 
% 

Though far and wide her sire and kinsfolk sought her, 

The darling of the tribe was seen no more : 
Save that a fisherman on broad Big- Water 

Deem'd that, while sitting by the waving shore, 
He mark'd a maiden who a bright wreath wore, 

And a tall fairy with the maid, — and how 
He knew full well that elf, as him who bore 

The gay green pine-plumes nodding o'er his brow. — 
With him in happy land, 'tis held, she roams e'en now. 



X. 

THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 



l. 

" rubens accendit lumina Vesper." 

Stilly eve came slowly stealing 
O'er savannah, fell, and forest, 
Ere we parted from our moorings, 
From the many- warder' d inlet. 

Purple grew the giant ridges ; 
Glow'd the sky, one dispread rainbow ; 
Flush' d each pale cloud and wan cloudlet 
With the warm blaze of the red rose ; 
While all calm in tranquil smoothness — 
Like some old-world warrior's target, 
Pure wrought gold bedeck'd with brilliants - 
Lay the isle-gemm'd Bay of Thunder. 



82 THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 



2. 



" now reigns, 

Full-orb'd, the moon, and with more pleasing light, 
Shadowy, sets off the face of things ; — " 

z,vSi va.7r(x,t.'" 



Then the moon beam'd o'er the landscape, 
Mingling her pale, ghostly lustre 
With the Sun-God's fading crimson, 
Silvering gay u rock and green tree-top. 

J?rom the lone height's 43 rose-red castle 

Many a lush ridge wound toward us, 

Many a trailing leafy foreland : 

And in many a bowery baylet — 

From thin ring of glimmering white beach, 

Or through shadowy greenwood-tangle — 

Curl'd the blue smoke of the camp-fire. 

3. 

** We gazed, in silence hush'd, with eyes intent 
On the refulgent spectacle " 

Night's dun dank mists blurr'd the coast-line, 
Shrouding the dead Day-King's glories. 



THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 83 

Lo ! amid the dusk sky northward, 
Bends a black mass o'er the mere-marge. 

From behind, toward the welkin, 

Shoot lithe pillars, or of saffron 

Or gay gold or pearly opal, — 

Then in stately march move eastward, — 

Like long, down-dropp'd, wind-borne rain-threads, a 
Like, methought, the show'r that wafted 
Erst the Lord of bright Olympus 
To His earth-born Argian maiden. 



" Insula portum 
Efficit objectu laterum, quibus omnis ab alto 
Frangitur, inque sinus scindit sese unda reductos.' 



Dawn sore battled with grim Night's mists, 
Ere the dusky host she routed, — 



a Such as we saw moving majestically down the Gulf of St. 
Lawrence off Cap Tourment on the 20th of the next month, in 
the course of a tour we made eastward. 

g2 



84 THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 

Ere disclosed she in the grey shore 
Haven 65 sought by careful pilot, 
Long and wistfully sought haven, — 
Haven shaped as old-world circus, 
Shaped as circus of the Eoman, — 
Fenced by lonely warder-islet 
From the rage of Keetchi Gahmi, 
From the rage of broad Big Water, — 
By haught ring of shaggy mountains 
Sheltered from the West and North West 
And the ice-engender' d North- Wind, 
From the blasts of Mudjeykeewis, 
From the fury of Key waydin, 
From the dire Kabeebonokka. 



5. 



" In the calm sunshine slept the glittering main." 

Parting hence, we bent us, homeward, 
Tow'rd the Leap of Mary's Eiver, — 



THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 

By the isle of title royal 
Flying gaily with a fair wind, 
Cloudless welkin, waveless water, — • 
By thy bill-like point, Keweena, — 65 
By the Mahnitoo's 36 lone island 
Scarce beyond, — .whose beacon-tower 
Bids men shun the grisly rude rock, 
As they haste o'er broad Big Water. 



-miracularerum ! 



Then — as children round the Yule-log, 
In the nights of drear December, 
Raptured with the visions summoned, 
With the visions laid and summon' d, 
By the all-creative lantern — 
Gazed we on the fleeting pageants 66 
Of the dreamy summer- sunshine — 
Now a chain of towery blue peaks 
g3 



86 THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 

Shown beyond the soft smooth water, 
Soon, as smoke, to vanish, molten 
In the misty, fleecy mere-marge, 
In the sweltering, steaming margin, 
In the drowsy, swoony margin — 
Now dwarf rock or giant foreland, 
Lowly isle and lofty light-house, 
Doubled in the hazy distance, 
Doubled in the simmering vapour 
Where grey sky and mere-marge mingled, 
Doubled now, and now inverted. 



Strange and wild the forms that issued 
From the steams of Light's weird cauldron, 
As at hest of dread magician. 



Where at peace lay isle and headland, 
Swart snakes twain, with crested foreheads, 
Eear'd their huge coils from the smooth lake, 
With their long-aisled jaws struck terror, 



THE WONDERS OF THE WELKIN. 87 

Threaten' d death with many a grim fang 
Ranged in dark close-serried war-ranks, — 
Hurrying each to rend the other 
In fierce fratricidal conflicts 



b Composed, from memory and by aid of sketches, in August, 
1859. It would have been mentioned by Liyy as a portent of 
the war now raging between the two great sections of the 
(dis-) United States of North America (cf. Virgil. G-. i. 474, 
489-502 ; Ovid. M. xy. 782 ; Shakespeare's Julius Ccesar, ii. 2). 






g4 



XI. 
anir 

Cfte £>tatdp Cram, 

v on 

THE ORIGIN OF THE 

WHITEFISH 71 AND OF THE TOTEM OF THE CRANES 71 , 

A Story told in 

M)t JHacm 81 nf tfje ILiUU iWafmttaa*- 36 



" Woman's faith and woman's trust ! • 
Write the characters in dust ! " 



Introduction. 

Oh ! have ye e'er heard how came to be 
The fairest of things in Red Man's sea, — 

The daintiest fish 
That e'er lay on platter ? — 

'Tis good as a boil, 

'Tis good as a broil ; 



xi Wbi Jpaft&feiw S>quafo &c. & 

'Tis milk, honey, oil ; 
None sweeter, none fatter : 
A right royal dish 
Is the dainty whitefish. 77 

This nice little creature, 
The pride of the mere, 
Bonne bouche of good cheer, 
Eed Man calls water- deer. 

The word 's ahclih-Tcummig : a 

'Tis rather a l rum,' big, 
Crack-jaw title ; nor clear 
Is its ring, but full queer 
To Yaganash b ear. 



a Ahdik is = reindeer, and Jcummig is — waters (see a. n. 33), 
g being the plural suffix (Sch. H. L. p. 265). K. (p. 326). 
writes the word atikameg, and Sch. (ib.), inconsistently acldiJc- 
kum-maig. L. writes ahdeeJc. 

b 'Yaganash' (= English) is, thinks K (p. 371), an Ojibwa 
corruption of the French Anglais. So is also Yankee, I appre- 
hend ; though it has been said (Godley's Letters from America) 
that the term ' Yankees ' is to be traced back, through an ima- 
ginary form, Yengees, to the word English. The Red Man calls 
the ' Yankee ' Keetchi Mokoman = Big Knife (see K. p. 367). 



go TO jpattfjkss Sbquafo a 

To give you the sense, one 
Would certainly meeter 
Translate water-ven'son. 
Yes : 'twere surely more meat-like and possibly neater. 

With the tale, how the whitefish came to be created, 
The ancient Crane-totem is associated. 
The stories are one, from the same epoch dated. 
And now for the tale : hear it faithfully stated, 
As 'tis by the old story-tellers related. 



TO OTtgfoam ttx tlje Jpar iaort!). 
(i.) 

In the far north there dwelt of old 
A mighty hunter, keen and bold. 
With fair sons twain, and beauteous wife, 
He pass'd, I ween, a joyous life. 
They ate the meat his arrows brought ; 
Of the warm furs their garb was wrought. 
Far from the haunts of other men, 
Their wigwam stood in lonely glen. 



xl antr tfje Sbtatdg ©rane. 91 

(2.) 

Ne'er had the children's young feet stray'd, 

Too tender yet to roam ; 
Ne'er had they threaded wild- wood shade ; p 
Ne'er had they hunter's life assay' d : 
Hard by that lonesome lodge they play'd; 
They chased the smooth ball 67 o'er the glade, 

Around their happy home. 

(3.) 

Nor slow — though tender imps — were they 
To mark how oft, as, day by day, 
Their sire had gone in quest of game, 
To the lone lodge a stranger came. 

(4.) 

At length outspake the elder child : — 

" Prithee, O mother dear ! 
" Say, who this goodly man and tall, 
" That — when our sire is in the wild, 
" And we at play with ball — 

" Doth come so often here. 



92 Ww Jpattijkss Sbquafo xi. 

" Say : shall I father tell, that he 
" This stranger good and tall may see ? 
" May be the good man doth desire 
" To talk of something with our sire. 7 ' 

(5.) 

Quick sped her answer : " Naughty boy ! 
" Blurt not of all that thou dost see. — 
" Thou ne'er the hunter's art wilt learn ; 
" Thou ne'er wilt be a warrior stern ; 
" Thou ne'er a goodly man wilt be : 

" Thy father will disown thee. 
" Not thine to dare the chase or battle, 
" Knowing of naught but baby-prattle, 
" Expert in naught, save woman's tattle : 

" Thou wilt a mere old crone be. 
"Go! fling aside thy childish toy ! 

" Go ! take thy little brother ! 
" Let bows and arrows be your joy ; 
u Let your thoughts be on deeds, not words ; 
" Go ! bring the squirrels and the birds, 

" As trophies, to your mother ! " 



xt. antr tf)t Sbtatelg ©rane. 93 

(6.) 

Years passed : and still the stranger came. 
Again the boy addressed the dame. — > 
" Mother ! why doth this stranger make 
" His access through the tangled brake, 

" And shun our father's path ? 
" Why doth he seek our solitude ? 
" He bringeth not, thou knowest, food : 

" If messages he hath, 
" Why such deliver to the spouse, 
" Not to the master of the house ? " 

(7.) 

Quoth she, with anger well nigh mad : 
" Hush ! — or I slay thee, prying lad ! " 

(8.) 

And time rolls on : and, as before, 
They see the unknown visitor, — 
Still mark him to the wigwam steal, 

And through the brake 

His access make. 



94 ®§t ^attfjkss Sbpafo xi. 

A dark suspicion doth impel 

That they no more the thing conceal, 

But straightway to their father tell, 
And all that they have seen reveal. 

(9.) 

No burst of fury rent the chief; 
No flood of tears brought kind relief. 
Though he had doted on his squaw, 
Yet none — not e'en his children — saw, 

Nor ear heard, sign of grief. 
"Whate'er he felt, he ne^er expressed. 
He stifled all within his breast. 

(10.) 

And yet — though naught of ire or teen 
Escaped his lips, nor trace was seen 

Upon his visage rude, 
Though scarce more dark and hard his mien, 
Though scarce more taciturn his mood, — 
Nature's own nobleman, I ween, 

That savage of the wood : 



xi. antr t&e Sctattlg ©rane. 95 

Though seeming rough, yet e'en too mild 
To wound the affection of the child, 
Gentler and tenderer than e'en 

To vex the guilty wife. 
He watch' d their sons forth to the wild : 
With tomahawk, raised not — save at foe — 
Till then, he dealt one deadly blow, 

And quench' d the forfeit life. 

(11.) 

The corse he laid deep in the mould, 
Beneath the ashes grey and cold, 
Where oft had blazed his hearth-fire bright, 
And spread around its cheery light 
On happy faces, that had thrown 
Back scarce less lustre of their own. 
Naught would be now amid the wold, 
But few charr'd embers weirdly lone, 
And wood-flakes ghostly white. 68 

(12.) 
The lads each sheet of birch-bark 27 loose, 
Untwine each thong-like root 52 of spruce, 



96 Wbz JFaft&lara Spato 1 xi. 

Pull up each stake, and deftly roll 
The matting 55 round the central pole. 68 
The doom has fall'n that they must roam 
Forth from their careless childhood's home. 68 
To that dear spot, to the smooth glade 
Where their young limbs had whilom play'd, 
A long and sad farewell they bade. 
Creepers will trail, and red pines wave 
Above the adulteress's grave. 



3E3E« 

Wfyz Pjantom- 

(i.) 

The corse, I ween, was buried deep. 
But did the vengeful spirit sleep ? 

(2.) 

Oft, as the youths return from roaming 

In chase of cahriboo, 34 
Amid the dusk, uncanny gloaming 

Their mother's wraith they view : 



xi. antf tfje ^tatdg ©ram, 97 

And, as sweeps by the gusty evening-gale, 
Her voice is heard in sad, reproachful wail. 



(3.) 

Oft in the visions of the night 
That well-known form is seen : 

Life-like it bends, as whilom dight, 
With sullen, scowling mien ; 

And, as they struggle to awake, 

Their hardy limbs with terror quake. 



(4.) 

E'en in the blaze of open day 
That phantom dark they cannot lay. — 
A blight has fall'n on their young bloom : 
Their morning sky is wrapp'd in gloom, — 
Such as the fair blue heav'n enshrouds, 
When gather the black thunder-clouds. — 
In vain they rouse them to be gay : 
The baleful vision flits before their eyes for aye. 

H 



98 ®j)e Jfattfrtess ^bpafo xi. 

®&* JWtgratton, 
(i. ) 

Then with their sire they counsel take 
That eerie region to forsake, 
And southward bend their wandering feet 
Toward the brighter clime whence spreads the summer 
heat. 

(2.) 
They thread those northland forests drear, 
Till opes the tawny 69 moorland-mere, c 
And, as they wind its marge around, 
They ever find new hunting-ground. 
They track the bear by the brown flood d 
Which issues from that pool of mud ; 69 
And aye they follow, as it passes 
Round huge rough rocks, through dank morasses, 



e Lake Neepigon (a. n. 69). 
d Nt epigon River. 



xi. an& ti)t Sbtatdg ©rant. 99 

Till those long-journeying waters sleep 
In Keetchi Gahmi's vasty deep. 

(3.) 

By Keetchi Gahmi's sounding shores, 
On lush green steeps, and bare red scaurs, 

They light their wandering fire. 
Night after night it flings its glow 
On that fell archipelago, 37 

Whose waters dark and dire 
Hide in their depths — far, far from mortal view — 
Thy dwelling-place, dread Matchi Mahnitoo ! 36 

(4.) 

And still they wend their lonesome way. 
They pass round the Big Sandy Bay : 35 
And, slowly as their steps advance, 
They thread the grey heights of Mamainse. 30 

(5.) 

Their camp-fire smokes in leafy grove : 
It flames on headland, and in cove : 
L.ofC. h2 



ioo fHfyz Jpattfjltss Sbquafo xi. 

It blazes where, 'tween tangled steeps — e 

Portals to mightiest of western seas, 

Kear'd, well might Eed Man deem, by Eed Man's 
Hercules — 39 
A bright, wide f river ever sweeps 
From Keetchi Gahmi's vasty deeps, 31 

To wrestle with black rocks and 'scape in myriad leaps. 28 



» 2ftapte- 

(i.) 

Now had the ever-varying scene, 

The healing hand of Time, 
Effaced the memory, I ween, 

Of that drear northern clime. 
Light is within their eyes ; they show 
On those blanch' d cheeks youth's ruddy glow. 

e Gros Cap andPt. Iroquois (see a. n. 30). 

f St. Mary's Kiver, or Keetchi- Grahmi Seebi (= K. G. river; 
see a. n. 26, 30, 33), is distinguished from the streams that flow 
into the great lake by its width and its clearness (see a. n. 46). 



xi. antr tfie Sbtatdg <&xmz. 101 

The restless sprite doth vex no more ; 
Vanish'd the cloud so long hung o'er. 
Their past life's torments they esteem 
But horrors of some hideous dream. 

(2.) 

They wend along the river-strand : 
Beside them lies the southern land : 
Lo ! rolling by them o'er the sand, 

A grisly thing hath sped ; 
And, by those deftly-plaited tresses 
Oft stroked in childhood's fond caresses, 
They know their mother's head. 
Yes : 'twas naught else than her fell, rancorous c jeebi,'s 
That flitted there by Keetchi-Gahmi SeebL 26 

(3.) 

Trembling they tread that ringing shore, 
Where many a pigmy h rock 
The giant h -torrent's proud career dares block, — 

g = ghost (see H. xvii.) 

h The Ked Man has his giants and pigmies (see IX, f. n. a). 
h3 



102 Wfyz §&ify\m &pafo xi. 

Where the torrent toils, 
And chafes, and boils, 
And foams, and tosses 
Against their bosses, — 
Where still they face his furious shock, 
His whirling war-dance mock, 
His onset, and his roar. 



(4.) 

There, 'mid the deafening, dazing fray, 
A stately bird did sit alway, 

A crane both huge and hoar. 
The youths that stately bird do pray : 
" Behold, O grandfather ! " — they say — 
" How a foul sprite we cannot lay 

" Doth vex us evermore ! 
" She haunteth us by night and day. 
" Haste to our aid without delay, 

" And bear us safely o'er ! 
" So may we 'scape her pow'r on yon fair southern 
shore." 



xi. antr tf)t Sbtatdg ©ran*. 103 

(5.) 

That stately crane with eld was grey : 
Upon lone rock he sat alway, — 

As one in spell-bound trance, — 
Amid that deafening, dazing fray, — 
'Mid the din of the batter' d rocks at bay, 
'Mid the frenzied flood's fleet foamy spray, 

'Mid his whirling, 'wildering dance. 

(6.) 

Where rock and torrent yell'd around, 
The aged monster sat astound, 
And bent his neck in drowsy swound, 
His stately neck in slumbrous swound. 

(7.) 

He hears, at length, that earnest cry ; 

He hears their piercing plain : 
His neck he stretches far and high ; 
His huge wings lift him in the sky ; 
Across the foaming flood doth fly 

That stately, hoary crane. 
h4 



104 Ww ,# attljlm Sbquafo xi. 

(8.) 

But, ere he granted them his aid, 
" Take heed ye do not touch " — he said — 
" The hinder part of my grey head ! 
" For it is sore : — and, if ye press 
" Against it, I, in my distress, 
" Must cast you off my stately neck, 
" To whirl amid yon flood, a torn and grisly wreck." 

(9.) 

The youths obey'd the dread command, 
And safely reach'd the southern strand. 

(10.) 

Then back the bird did wend his way — 
That stately crane, with eld so grey — 
Upon lone rock to sit alway, — 

As one in spell-bound trance, — 
Amid that deafening, dazing fray, — 
'Mid the din of the batter' d rocks at bay, 
'Mid the frenzied flood's fleet foamy spray, 

'Mid his whirling, Vildering dance. 



xi. antr tf)t Sbtattlg GDrane- 105 

(11.) 

Where rock and torrent yell'd around, 
The aged monster sat astound, 
And bent his neck in drowsy swound, 
His stately neck in slumbrous swound, 

(12.) 

Steals from the shore eftsoons a moan ; 
By the north wind a voice is blown : 
The tranced bird 
That voice hath heard ; 
So shrill and high its tone : — 
" Haste, grandsire dear ! to one distrest ! — 
" Deep is the woe that rends my breast : — 
" My two sweet bairns have left the nest ; 
" My goodly sons have flown : 
" And, while they wander far, I weep and wail alone. — 
" Haste ! grandsire dear ! obey my hest ! 
" And aid me in my loving quest ! 
" For sure thy stately wings bear safe o'er wave and 
stone." 



106 Ww ^attfjkss Sbquafo xi. 

(13.) 

He hears that tender winsome cry ; 

He hears her piercing plain : 
His neck he stretches far and high ; 
His huge wings lift him in the sky ; 
Across the foaming flood doth fly 

That stately, hoary crane. 

(14.) 

But, ere he granted her his aid, 
" Take heed thou do not touch " — he said — 
" The hinder part of my grey head ! 
" For it is sore : — and, if thou press 
" Against it, I, in my distress, 
" Must cast thee off my stately neck, 
" To whirl amid yon flood, a torn and grisly wreck." 

(15.) 

Ah ! since the first man's squaw durst eat 
That berry beautiful and sweet, 
Though warn'd by Keetchi Mahnitoo 36 
She and her lord the deed should rue, — 70 



xi. anO tyz Statdg ©ran*- 107 

Since fell from Man his glistering scales, 
Naught left him but dim digit-nails, — 70 
Since icy -finger' d Pauguk came, 70 
With hollow voice and eye of flame, — 
Ever, I wis, hath woman been 
A fickle, faithless, prying quean. 

(16.) 

The squaw had promised to obey : 
Half had perform' d his grewsome way 
That stately crane with eld so grey. 

(17.) 

But much she marvell'd how a bird, 
Who from that lone rock never stirr'd, 

Had ever met with foe, 
How, while, as glamour-bound, he dozed, 
Direst of wounds Time had not closed, 

And heal'd e'en deadliest blow. — 
Marvell'd and ponder' d much the squaw : — 
At least, how large might be the i raw,' 

That child of Eve would know. 



108 ®3)e jfattfjkss gbquafo xi. 

Guiding her hand with woman's art, 
Softly she touch' d the injured part. — 

Straightway the bird 

Fulfils his word : 
He shakes his stately neck and wings, 
And in the flood his burden flings. 



(18.) 

Then oped his mouth : — " O wicked wife ! 
" Useless thou wert in mortal life : 

" Useless wert thou, and ill thy fame. 
" No more a guilty thing of earth, 
" Now let thy people own thy worth, 

" And Ahdik-Kummig be thy name." 

(19.) 

So spake the stately, hoary crane. — 
From stone to stone 
The head was thrown ; 
And forth was strown, 

Like roe, the faithless woman's brain. 



xi. anir ti)t Sbtatdg ■ ffirane* 109 

And, as it spread 
From the toss'd head, 
That strown brain bred 
Unnumber'd goodly daughters : — 
Eed folk call them the Deer of the Waters. 

Much doth Eed Man cherish that 
Water-deer, so soft and fat ; 
Much he loves the dainty dish, 
Which White Man — from its hue, I ween — hath 
named whitefish. 



(20.) 

Seek ye to learn what happen'd more 
To them who reached the southern shore, 
Who 'scaped their wicked mother's sprite, 
And baffled her revengeful spite ? — 
Listen ! and I will rede you right. 

A proper sense of their deliverance smote 'em. 
The crane they honour' d as their family l totem.' 71 



no ®I)e jpatt^Uss Sbpafo xi. 

A goodly tribe, I ween, wax'd they : 
The Cranes 171 continue to this day. 

(21.) 

And still the memory doth remain 
Of Saut Saint e Marie's * stately crane, 
And of the faithless woman's brain. * 



X' ENVOI. 

This tale of eld the hoar grandsire 
E elates beside the Eed Man's fire, 
With gay and grave interpolations J 
To pleasure and instruct the younger generations : 

1 Saut Ste. Marie is one of the places inhabited by the rem- 
nant of this branch of the Ojibwas (see a. n. 71). My reader 
must suppose this story to be told by a Crane. The place owes 
its settlement to " the abundance of whitefish, and the facilities 
for capturing them in the foaming rapids " (a. n. 28). 

j K. (p. 88) says : — " It was clear to me that every narrator 
added much of his own, and altered a good deal according to 
his taste. The same story has been told me by two different 
persons, and I have noticed considerable variations, although 
the groundwork and style of composition remained the same." 



xl an& tftf £>tatelg ©rane. m 

This tale of eld the grizzled sqnaw k 
Eecounts with glee, and yet with awe, — 
Beside the embers all a-blaze, — 
In the dark, dreary, weary days, 
When fast is closed the wigwam door, 
When streams are ice and earth is frore, — ■ 
When Peeboan's 1 cold breath has congeaTd 
The vasty sea m to stony field, — 

My reader must imagine that I have given the version of " the 
hoar grandsire " (a " stately, hoary Crane," in fact). The 
lament in IV. (15) is, of course, his "interpolation." 

Instead of following Sch. (H. L., p. 265), I have thought it 
more consistent with the apparition of the head of the squaw 
on the river- strand, to make her despatched by a tomahawk, not 
by a club. Besides, the former is the weapon employed in a 
somewhat similar case mentioned by K. (p. 359). 

k The story might be told, in her way, by "the grizzled 
squaw." K. (p. 92) was told a story of a good squaw and a 
naughty squaw by an old woman. He writes : — " I have often 
heard it stated that men are the only story-tellers, and that 
men and boys are alone permitted to listen to them. I know 
not if this be the case, though it may be so with some sort of 
stories ; but it is a fact that I found many old women equally 
eloquent and inventive." (K. p. 88.) 

1 = winter. 

m To an inhabitant of Saut Ste. Marie, the freezing over of 
the surface of Tequamenon Bay (25 m. in diameter) would well 
pass for that of the whole of Lake Superior. 



112 ' ©&£ ^aftijlm gbpafo act 

When o'er the black woods Peeboan shakes 
His hoary locks in silver flakes, — 
When o'er the melancholy meres 
Sad Peeboan drops his chilly tears, — 
When fierce Kabeebonokka blows 
Southward that piercing sleet, and those 
Swift, thronging, whirling, driving snows, — 
When heavily the drifts have leant 
On the swaying, tottering tent, — 
When round the baffied smoke-wreaths roll, — 
When rocks and groans the wigwam pole, — 
When the girls are plying their winter-task 
With 'wattap' 52 and " Keetchi-Gahmi 'washk,' "— 55 
When with wood and dye the quick-eyed boys 
Are shaping and staining the cunning decoys, 77 
That shall play round the sleek, soft Siskawet's n 
eyes, 

n " The siskawet is a fish bearing some resemblance to the 
salmon-trout. As it belongs to the" larger fish, and is peculiar to 
Lake Superior — at least to the upper lakes of the St. Lawrence — 
it has attained a certain degree of celebrity, and some persons 
consider it a delicacy. But it is too fat and soft" (K p. 325). 
"Lake Superior abounds with the siskowit, a delicious fish, 



xi. anti tf)t Sbtatdg ©raue. 113 

And gently lure her, until she rise 

And hang on the barb a goodly prize, 

Or are weaving the net 77 or the spear-cord 77 

strong, 
Or are shaping the pole 77 , or are fixing the 

prong,— 77 
When over the long plain crystalline ° 
The fisher's torch 77 has ceased to shine, 
And the lusty youths to the wigwam bring 
Swart NahmaP, the cannibal, fiendly Fish-King, 

weighing from three to ten pounds. They are exceedingly fat, 
and, when tried, will yield 25 per cent, of oil " (Sketches of the 
City of Detroit, pub. in 1855, and cited in D. p. 138). 

St. Mary's Kiver from the Saut upward. 

p "The Indians consider the sturgeon (Acipenser Sturio) 'the 
king of fish,' and it plays a very devilish part in their legends. 
Not only does it swallow the hero Menaboju {alias Ninnibohzhoo, 
alias Hiawatha), canoe and all (see H. viii.), but it is frequently 
the representative of the evil principle" (K. p. 325). It is 
said to enjoy the singular privilege of being able to shoot the 
Niagara Falls unscathed; seldom, however, for it is "almost 
always killed, and" its "respiratory organs torn" (K. C. vol. 
ii. p. 152). It has been taken "weighing upwards of one 
hundred pounds " (D. ib.). There is a smaller kind, termed 
the rock-sturgeon. 



114 W&t jpatt^kss Sbpafo xi. 

Or Namaycush * or sheeny Water-deer r 
Quiver and writhe on the ruthless spear, — 
When the hearth name is flaring, 

And with keen good-wife zeal 
The young squaw 's preparing 

The fish for the meal, — 
When the storm-blast howls without, 

But the good cheer's hiss within 
And the pealing laughter-shout 

Outroar the tempest's din, — 
In the long, wild, uncanny nights, — s 
In the eerie Moon 81 of the Little Sprites. 36 



* The great lake-trout (Salmo Namaycush) has been caught 
to the weight of 60 lbs. (D. ib.). 

r The whitefish {Coregonus albus). There are the 'frosted 
whitefish,' and other varieties termed herrings. 

s " But of all the Indian social meetings, I was most interested 
by those at which songs were sung and stories told. Before I 
had any opportunity of witnessing these, I had often heard them 
spoken of by the ' voyageurs ' and traders. It is a frequent 
occurrence that the members of a family or the neighbours will 
assemble on the long winter-evenings, when nothing else can be 
done, and request a clever story-teller to tell them old legends and 



xi. arntr tije &tat*lg Crane. 115 

fables. .... The Canadian ' voyageursj traders, and ' coureurs 
des bois' are as delighted with these stories as the Indians 
themselves. But it says little for the poetic feeling and literary- 
taste of the old missionaries, and the innumerable travellers who 
have described these countries, that the outer public has only 
learned so little, and at so recent a date, of this memorable 
treasure among these savage tribes. Of the old authors, hardly 
one alludes to the subject, which the missionaries probably 
thought too unholy for them to handle, and which other travellers 
overlooked through ignorance of the language and want of 
leisure. Mr. Schoolcraft was the first, in his Algic Besearches, 
to make an attempt to collect the fables and stories of the 
Indians ; and Longfellow, in his Hiawatha, has submitted some 
graceful specimens to the European worlcl of letters " (K. p. 86). 
K. (ib.) found this "narrative-talent" universal among the 
Ked Men. He was told of " an Indian hunter, who was a most 
exemplary and amiable father of a family. When he had re- 
turned home in the evening from the chase, his squaw had a 
warm dish in readiness for him. She wrung out his wet clothes 
and moccasins, and hung them round the fire to dry. After he 
had supped, he would lie down on his bed, and the children 
would nestle round him. He would joke and play with the 
little ones, call the elder children to him, question them as to 
their conduct, give them good lessons and rules of life, and tell 
them stories" (K. p. 276). 



i2 



XII. 

THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. 



l. 

" Ingentem .... Centaurum promovet : ille 
Instat aquse, saxumque undis immane minatur 
Arduus, _" 

Down Saint Mary's sinuous torrent 
Fared we on, in goodlier fire-ship, 
To the mere that minds the Pale Face 
Of the erst wide-dreaded Huron. 78 



" Summer isles of Eden, lying in dark-purple spheres of sea." 
pilot, d' ikocyvurvj xiXtrou' Tcocka.) di 11 7roi(rcct' ,J 

And our helmsman steer' d us westward- 
To the verdure-mantling channel, 9. 

The Strait or Straits of Mackinaw. 



XII. THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. 117 

Whither rolls broad Mitchi-Gahming b 
From lush, blossom -spangled prairie, 
Teeming lea, and bounteous corn-land, — c 
From charr'd greenery d of some old world 
Buried deep 'neath many a world's corse, 
Treasuring boons untold, unvalued, 
For the heirs of myriad cycles, — 
Soils far- stretching Mitchi-Gahming,— 
Eolls, o'erbrimming, forth, to mingle 
With the mighty sister-waters, — 

b = Great Waters (see a. n. 33). Michigan is a French ab- 
breviation. Lake Michigan was named by its European dis- 
coverers Lac Illinois. Another name was Lac d' Orleans (see 
a, n. 80). 

c « Thirty years ago breadstuffs were sent from Buffalo west- 
ward to snpply settlers in the wilderness, That wilderness has 
now become the granary of the world. The first shipment of 
wheat at Chicago for the eastward was made in 1838, and con- 
sisted of only 2000 bushels during the year. In 1855 upwards 
of 20,000,000 bushels were shipped. During the month of Oc- 
tober last 12,483,797 bushels of grain and flour were received 
at Buffalo; and, during the thirteen months ending the 31st of 
October last, the receipts at Buffalo were 51,969,142 bushels of 
grain and flour." (A paragraph headed American corn in the 
Times for Dec. 5, 1861.) 

d Alluding to the coal-fields in the State of Ohio. 
*i 3 



118 THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. XII. 

Westward steer' d us, to those fair holms, — 
Mottled greenwood, yellow mere-marge, — e 
To the fairest f of those fair holms, 
Winsomest of mere-bathed Edens, 
Queen of May among her fellows, — 
Queen as Dian 'mid the Oreads.s 

3. 

vv]crog h&vhgY.ttro'ee, — ** 

Lady of Hesperian islets ! 
Sure, had the blithe gods of Hellas 
Known thee, here had rear'd their altars 
Artemis then and Apollo ; 
Pallas then and Aphrodite 
Crown'd thy flowery 72 knolls and white cliffs 
With gay shrine and stalwart fortress, 11 

1 Shakespeare's "yellow sands" to the life. 

1 Mackinaw (a. n. ?2). 

Virgil, /Kti. i. 494 — 504, and his model in Homers 
Oiyu. vi. 102-109. 

1 Pallas was, par excellence, the Goddess of Strongholds, and 
in the remains of ancienl Greek literature her epithets, as such, 
an numerous, 



XII. THE ISLET OP THE MAHNITOOS. 119 

Stout hoar stone *, lithe pearly column ; 
Yea, for thee had been forsaken 
KhodesJ, and Cyprus k , and Cythera, 1 



1 Alluding to the ' Cyclopean walls/ 

j Not only had this island that gigantic statue of the Sun- 
God, which, as the Colossus -of Ehodes, was numbered among 
the seven wonders of the ancient world, but her gymnasium and 
her temple of the Vine- God were adorned with a profusion of 
statues, and the highest point of her mountain-chain, rising 
4,560 feet above the Mediterranean, was crowned with a temple 
dedicated to the worship of the King of the Gods. On the 
strength of her name, she claimed to be, par excellence, the 
"land of roses," and placed that flower on her coins. 

k This island was supposed to be the chosen haunt of Aphro- 
dite, the Goddess of Beauty. The highest points of the range 
which almost entirely occupies its surface are 7000 feet above 
the Levant. On the north side " the chain is bold and rugged, 
on the south side the scenery is still bolder, presenting a deeply- 
serrated outline with thickly-wooded steeps, which are broken 
by masses of limestone, or furrowed by deep picturesque valleys, 
in which grow the narcissus, the anemone, and the ranunculus.' ' 
(Dictionary of Greek and Boman Geography, ed. Dr. W. Smith.) 
1 This island — the modern Cerigo, and one of the seven 
Ionian islands un^r British protection — is represented by the 
poets as not only a favourite haunt of Aphrodite, but also as 
the first piece of ground that she trod after issuing from the 
foam of the sea, whence she sprang according to the fanciful 
etymology of the ancients. 

i4 



120 THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. XII. 

Patara m , Sunium n , and iEgina ; ° 
E'en the Cyclad rock p had ever 
Floated fameless and unhallow'd. 

m This ancient Lycian city, on the south-west coast of Asia 
Minor, was famed for its temple and oracle of Apollo, whose 
winter-abode it was supposed to be. Its site was, till recently, 
covered with remains of temples, altars, and sculptures. 

n Sunium, the southeastern headland of Attica, and the apex 
of that triangular little commonwealth, is now called Cape Co- 
lonna, from its being crowned with the ruined columns of a 
temple of white marble, that was dedicated to the worship of 
Pallas, the guardian-goddess of the state. We learn from the 
poet Aristophanes that Poseidon, the God of the Sea, was also 
worshipped there, and Dr. Wordsworth (Athens and Attica) 
found what might be, he thought, remains of his temple. 

This island was adorned with temples of Pallas and Aphro- 
dite, as well as other deities. The ruins of what must have 
been a magnificent one grace a lofty eminence that commands a 
most striking prospect. Sculptures exhumed from that spot are 
preserved at Munich, and casts of them in the British Museum. 

p The islet-system to which Delos was considered to belong 
bore the name of Cyclades from their encircling it. It is the 
smallest of the group, and about five miles in circumference. 
The story was that it had been called out of the JEgean deep 
by the trident of the God of the Sea, but wa£ a floating island 
until the King of the Gods fastened it to the bottom by ada- 
mantine chains, that it might be a secure resting-place to the 
goddess Leto for the birth of her twins, Apollo and Artemis. 
Though whole shiploads of remains of ancient art have been 



XII. THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. 121 



vrovtov . . ihxXtxv <pCff'iv 
<rxue,au<ri difirvofiXMerrais,'* 

On yon lofty mount long sojourn'd — 
So the olden story telleth, 
So the wild lore of the Eed folk — 
Mishiboo 72 , the Chief of Spirits, 
* Chief of Mahnitoos of Red Man : 
Sound this chosen isle the main host 
Eanged He of the finny nations. 77 
Here first taught He man to twine him 
Wily nets, whose treacherous meshes 
Should ensnare the tyrant sturgeon % 
Oily siskawet % kenohzha r , 

carried off to Venice and Constantinople, there are stiU archi- 
tectural fragments of white marble on the north-western head- 
land, and on a bare granite rock 400 or 500 feet high, which, as 
Mount Cythnus, so commonly gives an epithet to Apollo and 
Artemis. There also remain portions of a colossal statue of 
Apollo. Delos was one of the chief seats of his worship, and it 
appears at the dawn of history as one of the holiest of the holy 
places of the Ionians, a character it long held. 

« See XI., f. n. n, p, q. 

r = the pickerel (see a. n. 77). 



122 THE ISLET OP THE MAHNITOOS. XII. 

Maskeynongey s , trout % bass, mullet, 77 
And the deer of lake-abysses, 
Dainty whitefish 77 , — tribe created 
From soft brain of " lovely woman," 
From toss'd skull of squaw unfaithful. 



5. 



' Quare agite, O juvenes ! tantarum in munere laudum 
Cingite fronde comas, et pocula porgite dextris, 
Communemque vocate deum, et date vina volentes. 
Dixerat : Herculea bicolor quum populus umbra 
Velavitque comas, foliisque innexa pependit ; 
Et sacer implevit dextram scyphus. Ocius omnes 
In mensam laeti libant, divosque precantur." 



Still the children of the Eed Man — 
Meeting in the joyous revel, 
Feasting on the finny captives — 
Call upon the mighty Spirits, 
Those dread Mahnitoos hymn loudly, 
Whom great Mishiboo, in parting, 
Left upon His chosen island, — 
Thank them for the daily bounty, 
Pray them aye to bless the wigwam, 

The gigantic pike of the Laurentian lakes (see a. n. 77). 



XII. THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. 123 

And to guard canoe and fish-snare 
From trie storm and from the billow. 72 

6. 

;< quasi cursores, vital lampada tradunt." 

Hither toil'd the holy Black-Kobe ; 57 
Warrior here and hoary l sachem ' 71 
Bent to his cross-blazoning banner. 
In his wake the unwearied boatman — 
Brave, blithe child of storm-roll'd Bretagne, 
Brave, blithe child of Norman headland — 
Gaily quell' d the New- World torrent, 
Gaily quell' d the New-World billow. 
With him sped gay Gallia's soldier : 
Here, on yon forsaken foreland, — 
'Mid grim gloom of western wildwood,— 
Gaily gleam' d her golden lily. 1 
Nathless paled its ancient lustre 
'Fore the brave red rose of England, — 
Brave red rose, soon rent and riven. 

* On old Fort Michi-Mackinac, see a. n. 72. 



124 THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. XII. 

Lo ! the rebel-children's stronghold ! 72 
Lo ! above sheen cliff, 72 that shelters 
Village 72 and blue sail-neck'd haven, 72 
Flaunts their fair flag, star -bespangled. 



7. 
(1.) 



4 in the midst is one particular rock, 

That rises like a column ' ' 



See' st thou in those groves the bare crag - 
Yon white, solitary pillar — 
Towering o'er lush leafy lab'rinth ? 

(2.) 



" medio de fonte leporum 

Surgit amari aliquid, quod in ipsis floribus angat.' 

" That respite o'er, like traverses and toils 
Must be again encounter'd. Such a stream 
Is human life ; — " 



See'st thou where, aloft embower'd, 
Feasts his charmed eye the stranger 



The Sugar-loaf (see a. n. 72). 



XII. THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. 125 

On the snow- white arch v sun-'lumin'd, 
Glistering through dark shrubs and grasses, 
Gleamy beach w and gloomy cedar, 
Shimmery birch 27 and sombre hemlock 5 ,— 
Feasts his charmed eye, entranced, 
On the fair mere shown in slumber 
'Neath that daintiest wreath of silver, — 
On the pale pool far beneath him, — 
Where in emerald melts the sapphire, — 
Where weave emerald and topaz 
Loveliest of limpid crystals, 
As in some deep desert-fountain, — 
Each bright pebble raising upward 
Her undimm'd x eye to the welkin, 

v The Arched Eock (see a. n. 72). A view of it is given as 
the frontispiece of this book. The vessel here alluded to 
* passed across the field of view ' during the progress of the 
drawing, and enhanced the rare beauty of the scene and of its 
charming variety of colouring, — what with her black hull, 
her white sails, and her graceful contour and movements. 

w The beach is here of small size, this being nearly its 
northernmost latitude (C. p. 23). 

x Thus I have since found P. (p. 314) writing: "So clear 
are the waters of Lake Huron, which wash its shores, that one 
may count the pebbles at an incredible depth. " 



126 THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. XII. 

To the blue dome's radiant curtain, 
To the all-o'erarching heaven : — 
Till some swan-like sail sough o'er it, 
Wafted by the breeze's soft breath,— 
Gently minding him, as he gazes, 
Of the vasty dark 78 deep yonder, 
Whence she ranges, which she veers to, — 
Of that world of toil and turmoil 
Vex'd with blasts and fretting surges.? 



" Quisquis honos tumuli, quidquid solamen humandi est,'» 

Deep in lone, dark, grewsome hollow 
Screen' d by bosky tangle yonder 
Hath far-roving Pale Face shudder'd 
At grim bones of man, that moulder 
Huddled in those eerie chambers. 72 



Say : are these the bleached relics 
Of full many a butcher'd foeman 

y Cf. I. 1, and XIV. 7. 



XII. THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. 127 

Torn to glut the victor-savage, 
Torn to grace the foul carousal 
Of some fierce tribe's riot-triumph 
In their reeking rock-rear'd eyrie ? 



Or were whilom barge-borne hither, 
With loud wail and pomp sepulchral, 
From each wide mere's scatter'd wigwams, 
Grim-prankt warrior and haught ' sachem ' 
Of all tribes that hither trysted 
From the cataract to the prairie — 
Robed, I ween, in richest raiment, 
Eoll'd in wrapping warm and gorgeous, — 72 
Girt with bow and dart-fill' d quiver, 
Spear and scalping-knife and hatchet, — 
Dazzling war-paint on their faces, — 
For their feet, far-striding snow-shoe, 73 
Lissome moccasin 53 beside them, — 
Each with meat and drink, to cheer him 
In his long, dark, dreary journey 76 
To the hunting-ground of Jeebis ? 



128 THE ISLET OF THE MAHNITOOS. XII. 

Vainly hath astonied Pale Face 
Question'd those dumb charnel-houses, 
Vainly sought out wisest Eed folk, 
Hung on lisp of faltering grandsire 72 
For scant, fragmentary legend, 
For dark, dim-recall'd tradition. 



" Apparent dirse facies,— " 

Here, 'tis said, the roaming savage 
Oft hath seen in voiceless terror 
His dread Mahnitoos 36 flit by him, 
Whirl' d in mystic, spell-fraught dances 
'Neath the quivering, wavering moonbeams. 

Oft, from o'er the murky mere-marge, 
Hath keen fisher's eye descried them 
There, beyond yon flashing breaker, 
Stretch' d in many a hideous volume 
Basking on the star-lit shingle. 2 

z Based on P. (pp. 314, 31). 



XIII. 



€f)t Ciritaamtr an& tfce S2aater--Htno;, 

A Story told in 

Efyz Moon 81 nf fyz (Bxtut MtfyxiitM*. 36 



W$i CBbtl Bream. 

iie Ba,<rx ffls, ovXi "Ovzigz, — " 

" Toj f/,iv iuiroifAivos irgocitpuviz Qiios"§viieps" 

(1.) 

Many there are, who have seen from far 

On the shore dark, eerie thing : 
But none — 'tis held — , save one, hath beheld 

And talk'd with the Water King. 3 " 

(2.) 

Mighty are dreams 74 — the Eed Man deems — 
And the visions they ope to view ; 

K 



130 W&t (JKiril&reamer xm. 

For Spirits then converse with Men, 
And Man with Mahnitoo. 36 

(3.) 

It fell to a wight, at dead of night 

A voice came lond and clear : 
And it bade him rehearse one little verse 

Above the dusky mere, 

(4.) 
This verse repeat, and the waters beat 

As the Meeda a doth his drum — 
And to him, then, before all men, 

Should wealth and honour come. 

(5.) 

But, though nights ten came the voice agen, 

All folk did rede that wight : — 
" Go not ! — beware ! — 'tis but foul snare 

" Set for thee by evil sprite." 

a The Meedas are an ancient religio-medical order. On their 
magic rites see a. n. 75. 



xni. anK t&e SSKattr-ltmg. m 

IE. 

Wit incantation. 

"— — inhorruit unda tenebris." 

" vitseque volantum, 

Et qua marmoreo fert monstra sub aequore pontus." 

(1.) 

And another night came : — then awoke his dame 

At his shouts — " I come : I come : — 
" What ! dost not hear on the dusky mere 

" A sound, as of beaten drum ? " 

(2.) 

" No drum I hear : " — quoth the goodwife dear — 

a Sure all is still and dumb : 
" Nor doth e'en the surge roar on the pebbly shore: " — 

Yet he shouted — " I come : I come." 

(3.) 

And he utter'd that shout, as he hurried without 

And the dusky waters sought. 
And the squaw crept near ; for she 'gan to fear 

Her lord had gone distraught. 
k2 



132 Wfyz (Bbtltamtr xra. 

(4.) 
She mark'd well, how, with bend and bow, 

O'er the mere his staff he drew, 
And did o'er it rehearse one little verse, 

And strike it strokes not few : 

(5.) 

And how that verse he did aye rehearse ; 

How he struck, as he mutter' d : and then, 
As he bent and bow'd, how he utter'd it loud, 

And struck the waters agen. 

(6.) 
And then she did note, that — while he smote, 

And utter'd that magic sound — 
Its power he proves ; for the water moves, 

And slow wheels round and round. 

(7.) 
And then, — more quick as sped his stick, 

And his song in fleeter chime — 
That aye more fast the whirlpool past, 

And larger grew each time. 



xiii. antr tf)e 212Sat£t=Btng. m 

(8.) 

And so mighty at length became its strength, 

That the fish in its coils were drawn, 
And soon came all, both great and small, 

That the vasty waters spawn. 

(9.) 
Bass, trout, and eel, in mazy reel, 

The yawning whirlpool drew, 
Newts, frogs, and herds of water-birds, 

And insects that swam or flew. 

(10.) 

And they whizz' d and flapt, and they curl'd and 
snapt, 

As they whirl'd in giddy round ; 
And they show'd black jaws and yellow maws — 

Till that wight was nigh astound. 

(11.) 

And the pool, she sees, hath reach' d his knees ; — 
Yet his feet stood firm and strong, 
k3 



134 *&& ©ittl&reamer xnr. 

And still lie smote as well as he mote, 
And chaunted his elvish song. 

(12.) 

And that mystic verse he did aye rehearse ; 

Though the waters rose to his chin, 
Though he sway'd unsteady amid the wild eddy 

That threaten'd to swallow him in. 

(13.) 

For still he would stand on the whelmed strand, 

And still he would drum and sing, 
Till he made appear from the mirksome mere 

None less than the Water King. 

HEfc 

" Venimus, hinc lapsis qusesitum oracula rebus." 
(1.) 

Lo ! the waters sank from the pebbly bank ; 

And the charm — it seem'd to break. 
Lo ! the pool was gone, with its motley spawn ; 

And he stood alone by the lake. 



xin. antr tije SSKater-Btng. 135 

Slow 'gan to uprear from the calm still mere 
His folds a monstrous snake. 



(2.) 

" What wilt thou of Me ? " — quoth the Lord of 
the Sea — 

" And why hast thou summon' d Me here 
" Erom My quiet sleep, fathoms countless deep 

" In the depths of the dusky mere? — 
" From My tranced sleep 'neath the vasty deep 

" Wherefore durst summon Me here ? " 

(3.) . 

Then that wight outspake by the lone black 
lake — 
Stout heart, I wis, had he — 
" Prithee, give me that thing — thou Water King ! 

" Bestow that boon on me — 
" That shall bring me health, — that shall bring 
me wealth, 
" And a happy man to be." 
k4 



136 Ww (JBbtUmamrr im. 

(4.) 

Quoth the Lord of the Sea — " Is mark'd by thee 

" What decks My stately crest? 

" To My chamber by eye of man unseen 

" Its ghostly lustre as torch hath been. 

" My horns between 

" It flares, I ween — 

" That deep-sea bloom of unearthly sheen. 

" It take, — and have thy hest ! 
" It shall sate, sure, every lust of thine — 
" Shall that Mahnitoo-flower's 36 dust divine. 
" But thy tender children must be Mine." 

1 ( 5. ) 

Now that wight had been 'ware, 
How the huge snake bare 
On his crested head 
A splendour rare. 
It was fiery red, 
It Was fiendly fair : 

Of brilliance dread, 
Of uncanny glare 



xiii. antr ti)t 32aatn;=Bmg. 137 

Was that elvish bloom, 

That had lit the gloom 

Of Matchi Mahnitoo's 36 murky lair. 

(6.) 

He seiz'd that flower with trembling grasp. 
Lo ! it faded away in his finger's clasp. 
But it left a dust, as it melted away, 
Like the vermeil earth 39 , that e'en to this day 
Makes Eed Man's face look grimly gay, 
When the tribe has donn'd its warlike array. 
This vermeil powder 75 that wight did mark, 
And carefully gather in birchen bark. 

(7.) 

Then the King of the Waters bade that he should 
Cut some little flat pieces of wood, 

In number a score, 

Or, may be, more, 
And place them there, a regular row 
In the shape of the horned moon, and so 
Lay them before Him in order due, 
And on each that vermeil powder strew. 



138 Wcfi. (JBtriltfreamu xm. 

(8.) 

The enchanter did, 

As the King had bid. — 

He duly spread 

That powder red. — 

And, as it was strew'd 

O'er those pieces of wood 

On the pebbly beach, 

The dust on each 
Was hallow' d by rede of the Water King. 
And He named the weal that each should bring, 
Or the woe it should turn away. 
There is no sickness, no ill that may 

Red folk befall, 
There is no want, there is no lust, 

But he named them all, — 
He named them all o'er that hallow'd dust. 

(9.) 

Then the Sprite of the Sea 
That wight did rede : 
" As oft as My counsel thou dost need, 



xiii. antt tfte 5SSaUr=Htng. 139 

" Come ! summon Me here 

" From the moonless mere ! 

' " So long as thon art allied with Me, 

" My powers are thine. 
" But the covenant list, that I make with thee : 
" When sickness or trouble I turn away, 
" Or thou satest lust of thine, — 
" That selfsame day, 
" Of thy tender children one is Mine." 



(10.) 

I wis, so spake 

The Lord of the Lake : 

Such, I wis, the rede of that kingly snake : - 
Then He 'gan to disappear. 

Winding His coils in grewsome sweep, 
He slowly sank, 
Down the pebbly bank, 
To His tranced sleep, 
Fathoms countless deep 
In the depths of the vasty mere. 



140 fflbz (JBbtHmamtr im, 



Wfyt SbtUrreamer alone in ti)e JWoonless i^tg|)t. 



' Nocte sublustri, nihil astra prseter 
Vidit et undas." 



(1.) 

Now the Water King was gone : — 
And that wight stood there alone, — 

Alone in the moonless night. — 
On that bold enchanter's head 
Full many a shuddering star 
Her quivering radiance shed. 
While faint afar 
Glimmer' d feebly bright, 
With its filmy light, 
The Path of the Dead — b 
That bridge so white 
Athwart the dark gulf thrown — 
That path the wan grey ghosts aye tread 
On their way to a world unknown. 

b = the Milky Way (see a. n. 76). 



xiii. an& tfje S2Sater=ltmg. hi 

(2.) 

Stout heart, I wis, had that wicked wight. 
Naught reck'd he of the moonless night. 

He gather' d those little flat pieces of wood, 
And the powder red 
That was o'er them spread : — 
He gather 'd each 
From the pebbly beach : — • 
And each he roll'd 
In separate fold : — 
And each fold with his teeth 27 he did carefully mark : — 
And he wrapp'd up all in birchen bark. — 27 
Then he sought his wigwam in joyous mood. 

(3.) 

And naught reck'd he, though there at the door 
Lay a grisly corse his feet before. 

For the faithful squaw — 
Who had crept anear 
To the dusky mere, — 
And had seen with awe, 



142 ©j)e <2Biril&uamer xm. 

How his staff he drew 

O'er the pool, and how, — 

With bend and bow, 

And strokes not few, — 
He did sing and drum, and drum and sing, 
Encircled by every horrible thing — 

With foul black jaw 

And yellow maw — 
That haunts the vasty deep within, — 
Till the whirling waters rose to his chin, 
And seem'd as if they must swallow him in, — 
And then how he talk'd with the Water King, 

That hideous snake 

That came from the lake, 
And wound up the beach, with His coil and His trail, 
With His blazing cresjb and His long black tail — 

What marvel that she 

Did turn and nee, 

And die from the fright 

Of that grewsome sight 

In the moonless night — 
And that so, when her lord went his homeward way, 
A grisly corse at his feet she lay ? 



xin. an& tfje S2later=lttng. us 



Stie Sequel 



11 Rard antecedentem scelestum 
Deseruit pede Poena claudo.' 



(1.) 

I wot ; that wight ere every Moon 
Did claim of the Water King some boon : 
And, as every boon that wight did gain, 
Was one of his tender children slain, 

(2.) 

And he was strong, 
And his days were long. 
He gat him health : 
And he gat him wealth. 

A mighty hunter was that wight, 
A dauntless warrior in the fight : - 
Surest in quest of game his bow, 
His tomahawk shunn'd by hardiest foe. 



144 Whz (Bbtl&reamer, &x, xm. 

Wahbahno c he, of all folk fear'd ; 
A Meeda a , first in wisdom weird ; 
A Jossakeed d , of all revered. 

(3.) 

And yet — if tales of eld rede right — 
He came to mourn that wicked night, 
And that he listed malignant sprite 
Bather than them who said — " Beware 
" Of evil dream and treacherous snare ! " 

Wretched his end : grewsome his fate. 
No more e the ancient redes relate. 



c = a magician (see a. n. 75). 

d = a seer (see a. n. 75). 

e The stories of the Ked folk generally end with a vagueness 
that gives them, I think, an additional charm. K. (p. 104) 
writes : — " Such are the conclusions Indian stories often have ; 
they pulse for a time like an iEolian harp, and are then 
suddenly silent." 



XIV. 

HOME WITH THE WATERS. 



l. 

" -— Vivite, silvse ! " 

Fondest of farewells we bade thee, 
Bowery Mackinaw ! 72 in rounding a 
Bosky a shores to dark drear Huron. 



2. 

" — totum involvit flammis nemus, et ruit atram 
Ad coelum picea crassus caligine nubem : 
Praesertim, si tempestas a vertice silvis 
Incubuit, glomeratque ferens incendia ventus." 

Wending o'er those depths of purple, 78 
By their sullen pine-cloak' d border, 

a Alluding to Isle Minnisays or Konde (see a. n. 72 (4)), and 
to Bois-blanc Island. 



146 HOME WITH THE WATERS. XIV. 

Ever and anon beheld we 
White cloud-sphere ascending slowly, — 
Telling of fierce blaze beneath it, 
And harsh din of crackling branches, 
And hoarse roar of trunk primaeval 
Bowing to a foe relentless. 



On a sudden b rose the west wind, 

In his might rose Mudjeykeewis, 

And the red-toiigued flames glared fiercely, 

And the lurid mass swept tow'rd us, 

Swept toward us and beyond us, 

From the far coast, all-o'ershadowing, 

Dyeing the dark waves of Huron 

With the leaden tinct and yellow, 

With the sheen that flaunts the peacock, 

With the sev'n-hued orbs enwoven 

By the Sun God on the shower. 

b When Saginaw Bay opened upon us. 



XIV. HOME WITH THE WATERS. 147 



" dominum me cernis aquarum 

Cursibus obliquis inter tua regna fluentem." 



On we voyaged, where the huge pool, c 
Flowing forth through sluice-like channel,* 1 
Parts stout oak and sturdy pine-tree, e 
Haughty, unretreating sentries 
Of haught, stubborn rival- empires, 
Emblems meet of thy great offspring, 
Home and hold of Law and Freedom ; — 
On, where scarce can cleave her pathway 
Labouring bark through sedgy shallows ; 79 - 
On, where river-strand gleams proudly, 
Gemm'd with frontier-seat of Commerce ; f - 
On, where many a gallant gay barque 
Lies o'erknoll'd by wind-lash' d Erie. m 



c Lake Huron (a. n. 78). 

d St. Clair Eiver (see a, n. 79). 

e It is a curious coincidence that, on this river, the oak is 
confined to the British side, and the pine to the • American/ 
So I heard from a gentleman residing on the British side. 

f The city of Detroit. 

l2 



148 HOME WITH THE WATERS. XIY. 



" that ancient river — " 

" The torrent's smoothness ere it dash below." 



Borne by Thought-yoked, Thought-rein' d 
Vapour, s ., 

Glode we down the flood of ages, 86 
O'er that old-world flood we floated, 
O'er that bright broad flood we floated : — 
Borne by Thought-yoked, Thought-rein'd Vapour, h 
Glode we o'er his cultured margin, 
Bravely prankt with tints of Summer, 
Tints of Easpberry Moon 81 , the joyous : — 
O'er smooth field of azure glode we, 
Through fair tilth and wildwood glode we, 
To the sea of mantling breakers, 1 
To the twin-cascades of thunder. 



s A steam-boat took us down that part (a. n. 82) of the 
Niagara Kiver which lies between Buffalo and Chippewa, a 
small town 2^ miles above the Falls. Vessels dare not go 
further. 

h The ' cars ' of the Erie and Ontario Eailroad took us on 
from Chippewa to a station a little below the Falls. 

i Alluding to the Kapids (see a, n. 83). 



XIV. H03IE WITH THE WATERS. 149 



(1.) 

" Ah ! that such beauty, varying in the light 
Of living nature, cannot be portray'd 
By words, nor by the pencil's silent skill ;" 

Oil ! the scene that burst upon us ! 
Oh ! the vision that enchain' d us 
Eye-charm'd, soul-charni'd in rapt thraldom ! 
Vainly doth that peerless landscape 
Limners pencil toil to render, 
Tongue of man assay to language, 
Strive to grasp the brain of mortal. 

May some myriad-minded spirit, 
Poet of the mighty future, 
Sing its fury and its terror, 
Sing its beauty and its grandeur ! 



(2.) 

" Ferret et exultat spumisque sonantibus albet " 

How the rushing, boiling torrent 
O'er swart rock-reefs froths and glances, 
l 3 



150 HOME WITH THE WATERS, XIV. 

Tossing up tall, plumy foam-jets, 
Each a gay Lutetian fountain : — 

(3.) 

" lucos, amcense 

Quos et aquae subeunt et aurse." 

How tide, ebb, and break the sun-waves 
O'er yon islet-groves 3, that ever 
Quaff new life and sheen and verdure 
From the prancing stream that clasps them, 
From the labyrinthine streamlets 
Sparkling, gushing on among them : — 

(4.) 

" ingenti motu stupefactus aquarum." 

How, where yon fair maze of green'ry k 
Gems that broad brow snowy-crested, 
Many a swollen liquid volume 
Leaps in headlong fall 85 stupendous, 



J Alluding to some islets on the Canadian side (see a. n. 83). 
k Goat Island (a. n. 84). 



XIV. HOME WITH THE WATERS. i 151 



Each a throng of driving, huddling, 
Crisp, pellucid giant-emeralds, 
Knit by glistering net of silver : — 



(5.) 

"Amid the roar of torrents, where they send 
From hollow clefts up to the clearer air 
A cloud of mist, which in the sunshine frames 
A lasting tablet — for the observer's eye 
Varying its rainbow hues. " 



How, below, the seething cauldron 
Whirls aloft his feathery foam-wreaths 
Spann'd by Day-wove, Night-wove iris — 87 
Ceaseless through the creeping ages, 
Through the soft, sweltering, slumbrous 

summers, 
Through the hard, all-numbing winters, 
Rain, and snow, and ice, and whirlwind, 
Booming clash of fiery storm-clouds — 
Resting in his dark deep I never : — 



1 "Soundings have been taken as near as possible to it, and 
everywhere it has been found to be 240 feet deep" (K. C. vol, 
ii. p. 146, note). 

l4 



152 HOME WITH THE WATERS. XIV 

(6.) 

" Antrum immane " 

How, with glide of long-robed spectres, 
Sweep the spray-sheets, slow and stately, 
Down yon gorge, as though the Spirits, 
That, from untold moons and harvests, 
(Such the faith of the awed Red Man,) 
Haunt beneath 0-neea-gahra, m 
'Neath The Thunder of the Waters — 



Giant-sire and giant-children — 8y 
Whose wild shout in grewsome war-dance, 
Whose fierce stamp in wheeling war-dance, 
Rolling through their hollow chamber, 88 
Mocking e'en the pealing torrent, 



111 This is, I believe, the best way of writing for Englishmen 
the compound word commonly written Niagara. We get that 
word from the French explorers, and they have shorn it of its 
first syllable. It is said to have been the Iroquois name for 
these falls, and to have borne the meaning I have given above. 



XIV. HOME WITH THE WATERS. 153 

Still makes hanging crags rebellow, 
Kingly trees and stout steeps tremble : — 

(7.) 

" Corniger Hesperidum fluvius regnator aquarum." 

How the flood stalks on majestic 90 
Through deep-rifted, cliff- wall' d channel, 
Hung, as meet, with sombre forest, 
Crown'd by the fond-finger' d wild-vine, 92 
And that clamberer 11 , whose pale cheek 
From decay takes heighten' d beauty, 
Deck'd with flush of dazzling vermeil, 
Glowing crimson, gorgeous purple, 
By the hectic bloom of autumn : 

So strode Assur's despot, treading 

Storied corridor ancestral ; 

So the warrior-queen of Petra 

Down her rose-red street, triumphant : — 

n The Virginia Creeper. 



154 HOME WITH THE WATERS. XIV. 

(8.) 

" — miserabile caesis 
Hostibus insultans " 

How his milk-white mane he arches, 
Trampling piles of massy boulders, 
Like wroth, corse-impeded charger : — ° 

(9.) 

" Proluit insano contorquens vortice silvas." 

How he scoops him in those grim cliffs 
Loveliest of bowery hollows, 
Twisting there in playful eddy 
Trunk of oak, and lordly pine-stem ; p 

(10.) 

" angusta viarum" 

Pent by closing tusks of adamant, 

Speeds through the jagg'd gap he bursts him, 

As escaped from 'tangling monster, 

From the jaws of some fell dragon : 93 

Alluding to the rapids 2\ miles below the Falls. At that 
point the river is spanned by a magnificent suspension-bridge. 
p Alluding to the Whirlpool (see a. n. 93). 



XIY. HOME WITH THE WATERS, 155 

(11.) 

il — — in spcculis Bummoque in Terti&e montis •* 

Sunders e'en those heights sublimer,** 
Where for aye the patriot-chieftain, F 
Imaged by deft graver's cunning, 
Hurls defiance at the invader ; 
Where, o'er his last field s , the hero ? 
High-set on aerial pillar, 1 
Scans, as whilom, hostile ambush. 94 



6. 



(1.) 

" eminence 

Renown'd for splendid prospect far and wide,'* 

There — while calm Oblivion buries 
In her silent folds the battle, 8 
And its roar and clash and carnage — 
Myriad-wreathed staircase thridding, 

* The Queenston Heights (see a.n. 93). 
r General Brock (see a. n. 94, 95). 

s The battle of Queenston (a. n. 94). 

* Brock's Monument (a. n. 96). 



156 HOME WITH THE WATERS. XIV. 

Mounts the passer-by, to banquet 

On the fair, Peace-brooded prospect — 

(2.) 

" nemorosa juga .*' 

On dark wood-draped ridge h 6 beneath him, 
Stretching, surging to dim distance, 
As long, crested deep-sea billow — 

(3.) 

" the bloom 

And gaiety of cultivated fields." 

On those broad flats spread before him — 
Still, smooth pasture, heaving corn-field — 
Parted by wild-winding snake-fence — 3 

(4.) 

" — pinguia culta secantem." 

On the noble river, wending 
'Mid his pleasaunce, lull'd and gentle, 97 
Tow'rd yon vasty pool u he carves him, 
There, unchafed, awhile to linger : — 

n Lake Ontario (a. n. 1). 



XIY. HOME WITH THE WATERS. 157 

Till — through thousand islands v winding. 
Dashing down w by meadow-levels, 
Marching, through the steeps x he severs, 
Past his right-imperial bulwark * — 
Prince of inland water-courses, 
Forth to final rest he issue, — 
Forth, through portal-gulf full-regal, 
To the end of his. proud progress, 
To last bourne of kingly rivers, 
To the all- entombing ocean. 



7. 

Soft had faded sheeny twilight, 
Softly Night's dusk wings expanded, 
Ere Ontario 1 bore our fleet barque 

v Alluding to the Thousand Islands (a. n. 98). 
w Alluding to the Eapids of the St. Lawrence (a. n. 99). 
x Cape Diamond (see a. n. 100) on the left bank, and Point 
Levi on the right. 

y The fortress of Quebec, which crowns Cape Diamond. 



158 HOME WITH THE WATERS. XIV. 

To his sovran port of traffic, 
To the many-voiced city, 2 
Bore us back in sad reluctance 
To her din, and toil, and trouble. 

8 Toronto (a. n. 2). 



XV. 

THE KING OF FLOODS. 



' Fluviorum rex — K 



Thorough the darksome deep, a 
Adown the beamy river, b 

On the great waters sweep, 
On, onward ever. 

2. 

Careering through swell and through foam, c 
Along with those waters wild we roam, — 

Slumbrously ride 

On the slumbrous tide, 

* Alluding, especially, to Lake Huron. 

b Alluding, especially, to St. Clair and Detroit Kivers. 

c Alluding, especially, to Lake Erie. 



160 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV, 

Float, as some dream, 

O'er the tranced stream, — d 

Till he shaketh off swound 

That could hold him short while, 
And awaketh, as giant from sleep, — 

With toss and with bound, 
With dread 'wildering leap, 

By quivering e isle, 
By rebellowing steep. 

3. 
(l.) 

Then in lordly pomp is he onward borne, 
Down the hollow path his steps have worn, 86 
Through the rift his ceaseless tramp hath torn, — - 



d Alluding to that part (a. n. 82) of the Niagara Kiver, which 
lies between Lake Erie and the Kapids. 

e Luna Island (see a. n. 87), an island between Goat Island 
.(a. n. 84) and the brink of the main 'American' Fall, is said to 
tremble (N. p. 49). 



XV. THE KING OF FLOODS. 161 

Through the deep ravine, 90 ' 93 
Where his tread hath been 86 
During endless round of eve and morn, — 
While moon after moon hath fill'd her horn, — 
While age after age of man is born, — 
While the tribes of earth, 

Like the greenwood-bloom, 
Have, in turn, their birth, 

And, in turn, their tomb, — 
While they fade away, 
Like the flower of May, — 
As the forest king, 
Though he shieldeth him o'er with many a ring, 13 
Though he doffeth never his summer array, 
Must yield to thy blighting touch, Decay ! — 

Down that deep ravine, — 
Eed cliffs between, 

Whose eld-worn towers 
Fair Summer hath hung 

With deft-wove bowers, 
Summer, ever young, 

M 



162 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV. 

With lush leafage green, 
With motley flowers, — 

Bowers, whose verdure is ever gay* 

With the kiss of the cataract's laughing spray, 

That doth whirl in mazy round alway, — 

Flowers, that seem to aye renew 

Each winsome shape and each glistering hue 

In the dancing spray's ever-lambent dew, — 

Bowers, whose sombre shades are lit 

By the burnish' d plumes that athwart them flit, 84 

By their fitful flash as of stray sunbeams, 

By their flush as of parting rainbow's gleams, — 

While above and around hath the Day King set 

That spangled myriad-colour' d net, 

Which, as magic robe, he ever weaves 

On the dainty forms of the fluttering leaves, — 

Flowers, that now in stillness lie, 
Like stars in the silent midnight-sky, 



XV. THE KING OF FLOODS. 163 

Now shimmer and wave, as oft as stirr'd 

By the cataract's breeze, or that tiny bird, 91 

Who doth love to hang on the downy tip 

Qf the honey' d cup's shy-opening lip, 

And with bold quick tongue its nectar sip, 

Fanning sultry air and bower and bloom 

With the murmurous 91 play of his restless plume, 

Whose lustre rare to and fro doth seem, 

As tress of the dawn-star, 91 to float and stream, 

Whose winnowing wind doth seem to blow 

O'er the sheen-flooded vault that glory-glow 

The dewy e'en-star is wont to throw 

O'er the fair white clouds that his course bestrow : — 

As in stormy gloaming the star of e'en, 

Shows that tiny bird in the summer-sheen, — 

With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 

A faery thing 

O'er the giant river: — 

Now to hover, and cling 
To the petal's hem, 
* m 2 



164 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV. 

Now to sway, and swing 

From the bending stem, — 91 
As ethereal gem 

Did the spray-bow 87 bring 
From the diadem 

Of the Noontide King; 88 
So to hover and cling, 

So to shimmer ever, 
So to sway and swing, 

Eeposing never, — 
With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 
A faery thing 

O'er the giant river : — 

Then to dart and veer 

In the simmering noon, — 
As in silver mere, — 

That rift aboon ; — 
All a-blaze his throat 

With the ruby's sheen, — 9 
Gay with gold his coat 

And with emerald green; — 91 



XV. THE KING OF FLOODS. 165 

Such, in sun-beam seen, 

Some dancing mote, — 
Such, at crimson e'en, 

Some brave-prankt boat ; — f 
So, that rift aboon, 

Shows his gorgeous gear, — 91 
So in simmering noon 

Will he dart and veer, — 
With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 
A faery thing 

O'er the giant river. 

See him pierce and pry- 
In the tangled vine ! 92 

See him mount on high 
O'er the aery pine ! 

See him gaily dance 
O'er the grim ravine, 

And sway and glance 

In the Sun God's 88 sheen, — <J1 

With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 

f Cf. L, 6-12. 
*M 3 



166 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV. 

A faery thing 

O'er the giant river ! 

Mark him wafted afar, 

As frail bee 91 , on the breeze ! 
Mark him shoot, as some star, 9 

To the shadowy trees ! 
To the tree's shade he flees, 

His plumage to preen, — 91 
Soon in gay garb to sway 

O'er the grim ravine, — 
Soon to dance and glance 

In the Sun God's 88 sheen,— 91 
With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 
A faery thing 

O'er the giant river. 

So from bower to bower 

Doth he speed his flight, 
So from flower to flower, 

As a living light, — 
On the brave bloom gloat, 

Thrid the lush festoon, — 



XY. THE KING OF FLOODS. 167 

So dart, so float, 

In the summer noon, 
Like pleasaunce-boat, f 

In Raspberry Moon, — & 
With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 
A faery thing 

O'er the giant river : 

Aye to hover and hie 

In his gay garb dight, 
As the lightning-fly h 

Through the mirksome night, — 
On the welkin clear 

Aye to dart and float, 
As on crystal mere f 

Doth the summer boat, — f 
In the noontide bright 

Now afar, now anear, 

s July (see a. n. 81). 
h Seel, 13andf.ii. li. 

31 4 



168 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV. 

As heav'nly sprite 

To gaze of seer, — 
With flittering wing, 

With hum and quiver, — 
A faery thing 

O'er the giant river. 

Oh ! merrily glide the golden hours 
In that deep ravine and its bloomy bow'rs, 
Through glowing sunshine and balmy show'rs. 
Oh ! passing fair, yet grewsome, I ween — 
As glamour- vision — that wondrous scene. 

(2.) 

Right royally rolls the dun tide under 
Those shimmery heights his sweep doth sunder, 
From his wild dread leap and his shout of thunder. * 
Well-pleased, I ween, wends the hoar flood-king 
'Neath bower and bloom and burnish'd wing, 
'Neath huge high rock and faery thing. 

■ Cf. XIV., 4 and 5 (6). 



XV. THE KING OF FLOODS. 169 

(3.) 

So, I wis, beheld 
The tribes of eld 
Move, the joyous festal pomp before, 
Some king of men along broad corridor, — 
Sacred sovran, whom prostrate crowds adore, 
Over snowy-vein' d dark marble floor, 

When was open flung, 

When had forward swung, 
At the sign of his coming, each massy door, — 
Some lord of many a teeming land 
Through his frescoed council- chamber grand, 

Through gay-draped hall, 

By encrimson'd wall, 

With princely mien, 

With the dazing sheen 
Of gorgeous Tyrian vest, 
With dark mantle and bright flowing crest. J 



J The foregoing lines allude, especially, to that part (a. n. 90) 
of the Niagara Eiver, which lies between the Falls and the 
Suspension-bridge rapids. 



170 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV. 

So with haughty stride, 

Hath homeward hied, 

In conqueror's pride, 

In triumphal state, 
Flush' d chief on whom armed myriads wait : — 

So, with roar and with whirl 

And with grewsome swirl, 

Through passage strait 

Of grim grey gate, 
Through surging throngs that his course molest, 
Stern despot whose hosts have fulfill'd his hest. k 

(4.) 

Thus, as lordly pomp of peace 1 or war, m 
Fares the progress proud of the flood-king hoar 
His eerie old-world pathway o'er, — 

k The foregoing lines allude, especially, to that part (a. n. 93) 
of the river, which lies between the Suspension-bridge rapids, 
inclusively, and Queenston Heights. 

1 Alluding to the part of the river between the Falls and the 
Suspension-bridge rapids. 

m Alluding to the part of the river between the Suspension- 
bridge rapids and Queenston Heights. 



XY. THE KING OF FLOODS. 171 

By tender green'ry and rugged scaur, 

By bloomy bower and towery shore, 

With roll l and whirl m and swirl m and roar. m 

4. 

See him gently glide n 

Smooth leas among, 
With soft murmurous sound, 

As of cheery song, 
Tripping blithe along 

Brave banks beside, 
Pacing calmly strong, 

With his tawny tide, 
To the pool profound, ° 

To the blue sea wide, 
To the lull of the fair l mere's breast, 
There to dally awhile 
In her sunny smile, 
To her heaving bosom prest ! — 

n Alluding to the part (a. n. 97) of the river between 
Queenston Heights and Lake Ontario. 
Lake Ontario (a. n. 1.) 



172 THE KING OF FLOODS. XV. 

Till, ar oils' d once more, 

By green isle? and shore 
Majestic march he keep, 

• By mountain hoar, <i 

By white berg frore, r 
To his bourne, the boundless deep : — 

Till his race be run — 

As thine, O Sun ! 
To thy bed in the amber west ; 

Till — as hero-soul 

To his mighty goal, 
To the heav'nly home of the blest, 

To thy glory-sea, 

Eternity ! — 
He wend to his ocean-rest. 

p Alluding, especially, to the Thousand Islands (a. n. 98). 

<* Alluding not so much to Cape Diamond and Point Levi as 
to Les Eboulemens (see a. n. 100), a fine range below Quebec. 

r Even in the middle of August we passed through a goodly 
number of ice-bergs, on emerging from the G-ulf of St. Lawrence 
(see^VL, 9 and f. n. 1). 



APPENDIX-NOTES 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



1. 

Lake Ontario. 

1 Ontario ' is said to mean ' the beautiful.' The lake bear- 
ing this name would naturally get it, par excellence, from the 
Red Man — what with its grand expanse and its richly- wooded 
shores. The Bay of Quinte is considered its most picturesque 
part (see 0.). The most important characteristic of the lake is 
the distinctness of the ' ridges' in which Sir Charles Lyell 
traced the gradual shrinking of its area (see a. n. 6). 

2. 

Toronto. 
00 The city. (2.) The meaning of its name. 
(1.) This city, now the most populous on the shores of Lake 
Ontario, was founded by Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe in 1794. 
In the previous year he selected its site, as the seat of govern- 
ment for Upper Canada, in preference to Newark (now Niagara), 
at the mouth of the Niagara river, and to Kingston, at the out- 
let of Lake Ontario. The former he considered too near the 



176 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

United States, the latter too far eastward. The site of the future 
city was occupied by a multitude of wild fowl, and by two 
families of the Eed people called Missisahgas (see a. n. 15). 
What recommended it was its harbour, formed by such a 
sandy spit as were Long Point and Presq' Isle in Lake Erie, 
and, probably, La Pointe in Lake Superior. All of these are 
now islands (see VI., f. n. h). The town was named York. In 
1813 it was twice burnt by a force of the United States, which 
had embarked from Sackett's Harbour. In 1834 it was incorpo- 
rated as a city. It then assumed its present sonorous name. In 
1858 it contained about 50,000 inhabitants. 

The Parliament of Upper Canada met at Newark from 1792 
to 1797. It then moved to the buildings prepared for it at the 
creation of Governor Simcoe, where it met till 1841, when the 
two Canadas were re-united after a separation of fifty years, and 
Montreal was made their common place of assembly. When, in 
1849, the parliament-buildings at that city were burnt, it was 
determined that Toronto should be the seat of government in 
1850 and 1851, and that afterwards she should, for alternate 
periods of four years, share the honour with Quebec. The deli- 
berations of the Canadian Legislature are now conducted under 
the shadow of the ancient fortress. In 1863, however, its mem- 
bers are to be summoned to Ottawa (formerly Bytown), a site 
selected by the Queen, on being requested by the Canadians to 
decide the question. Her Majesty was probably influenced by 
its possession of an excellent acropolis, its position on the border 
of the two sections of the province, its comparatively great dis- 
tance from the frontier, and its being the centre of the great 
highways of Canadian enterprise. 

(2.) Some (e. g. Ha. p. 78) say that Toronto means 'the 
place of meeting.' If so, we may suppose it to have been the 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 177 

comitium of some tribe of Eed Men. Others say that it means 
' trees in the water.' The name, as bearing the latter meaning, 
has been accounted for in two ways. Firstly, it has been re- 
ferred to the appearance, from the lake, of the trees on the 
sandy spit that produced the harbour. This was the explana- 
tion given me by the Nestor of the Canadian state- dignitaries. 
Secondly, it has been referred to the uprooted trees that are 
supposed to have drifted to the head of the bay (K. C. vol. ii. 
p. 13). The rushes there are, indeed, crowded with logs even 
now, under the regime of the White Man, and, when the site 
was surveyed, "dense and trackless forests lined the margin of 
the lake " (Bouchette). However, I prefer the former interpre- 
tation, 

3. 

The Snake-fence. 

" The usual fence is a zig-zag one of the simplest construction, 
made of split rails, 11 feet long, placed one above the other, 
seven rails in height. These rails are split by means of wedges 
and the axe, from 11 feet lengths of black-ash, cedar, oak, 
elm, white-ash, cherry, or bass-wood. Kails of pine, maple, or 
beech, are rarely used." (Br. p. 401.) 



4. 
The Hickory. 

The leaf of this tree is somewhat like that of the English 
walnut. The wood splits very easily, when green, but is very 
tenacious, when dry. Hence it is preferred for tool-handles, 
carriage- shafts, bows, &c. The nuts are very good eating. 

N 



178 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

5. 

The Hemlock. 

The hemlock {Abies Canadensis) is a species of spruce. It is 
a majestic tree. In Canada it is from 60 to 80 f. high. The 
wood is of no service, save as supplying boards for the under- 
covering of roofs and for fencing, or planks for the flooring 
of barns. The bark is valuable for tanning (see G.). 



The ancient Shores of Lake Ontario. 

" These ancient water-levels run all round the shores of Lake 
Ontario, and, in excavating parts, remains of extinct animals " 
[cf. a. n. 72, (4)] "are discovered" (Br. p. 192). At the 
Bay of Quinte the highest is 9 or 10 m. from the present 
shore. Behind Toronto it is 24 m. There it is called ' The 
Oak Ridges,' from being covered with oaks. It rises just 
above Hamilton, and is there called the Burlington Heights. 
Between that point and Queenston Heights it recedes from the 
water to a distance of from 4 to 8 m. There it is cloven 
by the Niagara river, and is 7 m. from the present shore of Lake 
Ontario. 

Mr. Hind (R. R. p. 252) speaks of these ancient shores as a 
"feature of interest, which is common to all the great lakes of 
the St. Lawrence basin," and C. (pp. 50, 55, 75, 95, 100, 103-6) 
often speaks of them. Mr. Hind traced such around Lake Win- 
nipeg (see R. R. pp. 252, 265, 269, 270, 275, 296). 



APPENDIX-NOTES, 179 

7. 

The Canadian Township. 

Upper Canada is divided into counties, each of which is 
subdivided into townships. A township is 10 m. square. This 
area is further subdivided into 11 concessions, which usually 
run east and west. Each concession again is divided, by lines 
at right angles, into 28 lots. Each lot contains 200 acres, the 
ordinary size of a farm (see Br. p. 40). 

The Canadian township is a revival of the tun of pre-Norman 
England. 

8. 
Lake Simcoe. 
This lake is named after the energetic founder of Toronto, 
who connected it with his embryo-city by the Appian work 
of a road called Yonge Street, 36 m. in length, and, like the 
Canadian ' township,' reminding us of pre-Norman England. 
Springs about 10 miles from Lake Ontario send down from the 
Oak Ridges (a. n. 6) streams, that fall into this lofty reservoir, 
and, after a wandering course of at least 800 miles, pass close by 
the place of their birth. 

9. 

The Chipmunk. 

The chipmunk (Sciurus striatum, i. e. striped squirrel) is a 
native of the colder parts of Asia as well as of America, and has 
been found in Europe. Its body is fawn-coloured, marked with 
three longitudinal black stripes. It is distinguished from other 
squirrels by being provided, like some families of the mouse 
n2 



180 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

tribe, with, cheek-pouches fitted for the temporary reception of 
food, and its mode of life rather resembles that of the dormouse. 
We had abundant opportunities for observing its habits ; as se- 
veral of the species took up their abode close to our house, and 
were to be seen gnawing the butternuts and beechnuts on the 
trees. Their complacent enjoyment of their simple meals was 
very amusing. Though easily alarmed, so tame were they, that, 
tripping down from the trees in the garden, they would run up a 
sloping board to the top of the window-sill of the drawing-room, 
and carry off bits of apple in our presence. 

On the northeastern shore of Lake Superior the Agassiz party 
found the ]\lissouri Striped Squirrel " One of the men,"' says 
C. (p. 52), " killed here a squirrel of the kind that takes the 
place of our { chipmunk' in these regions, the Tan das quadrivit- 
tatus. It resembles our animal, except that it is a little smaller, 
has a longer tail, and four black stripes, instead of three, on its 
back. We found it afterwards much more abundant than any 
other species — particularly on hill sides among broken rocks, 
attracting the attention by a loud, peculiar cry." The soimd 
uttered by our little friends was ' chip, chip, chip.' 



10. 
The Eed Man in Canada. 

"The Indian department takes cognizance of pverything re- 
lating to Indians in Canada, and, in order to carry out the busi- 
ness belonging to it, the province is divided into five districts. 
each under the charge of a local superintendent. 

"The first district embraces the whole of Eastern Canada, and 
a small part of the Upper Province. The second stretches from 
the western limits of the first to the head of Lake Ontario, com- 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 1 8 1 

prising also the Saugeen peninsula, and some of the islands in 
Lake Huron. The affairs of the Six Nations, or Iroquois, on Grand 
Eiver, and those of the Missisaguas, in the township of Tusca- 
rora" (on the Grand Eiver, S. E. of Hamilton), "occupy the 
exclusive attention of a third superintendent. The tribes resi- 
dent throughout the western peninsula of Canada, are under the 
charge of a fourth, and the bands in the occupation of the Ma- 
nitoulin Islands " (cf. a. n. 20, end), " together with the tribes 
on Lake Huron and Lake Superior, form the limits under the fifth, 
superintendent" (Hi. vol. ii. p. 188). For further information 
see this chapter of Mr. Hind's work. 

M. Kohl (K. C. vol. ii. chap, vi.) gives much space to his visit 
to the Ojibwas settled, on the eastern shore of Lake Kootchi- 
tching, in one of the ' Indian reserves,' or places set apart for 
the scanty remnant of the Eed Man in Canada. 

11. 
The Name of Lake Kootchi-tching. 

I have written the name of this lake as I believe best for the 
English eye. D. (p. 22) writes ' Couchiching,' probably good 
Franco-Canadian spelling. Mr. Keith Johnston, in his map, 
writes Gougichin ; M. Kohl (K. C. vol. ii. p. 65) Kutchiching. 
Probably the word means Great "Water, the first two syllables 
corresponding with those of the Eed Man's name for Lake Supe- 
rior (Keetchi-Gahmi, a. n. 33), and the last with the rest of that 
word. 

12. 
Bahrie. 

This town was founded in 1831, and named after Sir Eichard 
Barrie. A military road connects it and Lake Simcoe with 
N 3 



1 82 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

Penetanguishene and the Georgian Bay. The interval was 
originally settled chiefly by British soldiers, who were rewarded 
by government-grants. 

13. 
The Vigour of Canadian Trees. 

" The red pine," writes Sir E. Bonnycastle {Canada and the 
Canadians in 1846, vol. i. p. 174), " near Barrie and through all 
the Penetanguishene country, grows to an enormous size. I 
measured one near Barrie no less than 26 feet in girth ; and 
this was merely a chance one by the path-side. Its height, 
I think, must have been at least 200 feet, and it was vigorously 
healthy. What was its age ? It would have made a plank 8 
feet broad, after the bark was stripped off." 

As to the oak, — Mr. Linton {Life of a Backwoodsman) counted 
the rings of one that had been felled about midway between the 
head of Lake Ontario and Lake Huron. He calculated that "it 
had been a sapling about the time when Sir "William Wallace 
and Eobert Bruce were defending their [and his] native coun- 
try" (cited by Br. p. 395). 

The age of the white spruce {Abies alba) in the arctic latitudes 
" exceeds 400 years, before it shows signs of decay " (Kich. 
vol. ii. p. 317). 

14. 
The Canadian Frogs. 

There are five species, the more noteworthy of which are the 
Bull-Frog and the Spring-Frog. 

The Bull-frog {Bana pipiens, i. e. chirping frog) is from six 
to seven inches long, and correspondingly stout. It has been 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 183 

found weighing half a pound. Audubon says that the hind-legs, 
when cooked, are white, tender, and excellent eating (see Ha. 
p. 60). M. Kohl (K C. p. 85), while crossing Lake Kootchi- 
tching in a canoe, " heard a distant cry, a kind of bellow," and 
asked his Ked companion what it was. " ' It is either an ox or a 
frog,' was the reply ; ' I can't hear which.' This ' or ' surprised 
me for a moment, but I then remembered to have heard that the 
celebrated bull-frog inhabited these waters. In the spring, 
when they are very numerous, they bellow from the marshes 
like cattle on a pasture, and it seems that, at all events with 
respect to his voice, the frog here has effected what his ancestor 
in the fable attempted in vain." They appeared to me to bellow 
loudest in the evening of a hot summer-day. We used to listen 
to them in the "oozy woodland" (I. 1) that surrounded our 
house. 

The Spring-frog (Eana fontinalis, i. e. spring-frog, fountain- 
frog) is from three to four inches long. It is of a bright green 
colour. It usually lives close to clear pools and running streams, 
feeding on aquatic insects or any others that come within its 
reach, and leaping into the water when disturbed (Ha. p. 60). 
During a week's stay on the Canadian side of the Niagara Falls, 
toward the close of April, 1859, I came across a troop of them, 
basking in the sun by a little side-stream above the Horse-shoe 
FalL I shall never forget their beauty, or the marvellous quick- 
ness with which they bounded into the water. I found the 
spring-frog in a swampy corner of my garden. Its thighs are 
considered a delicacy. 

15. 

Nahdowa-Sahging, and Sahgima-Odahkahwahbewin. 

"The word Nottawasaga " — the name given to a stream 

n4 



184 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

flowing into the Georgian Bay, to the township southeast of 
Collingwood, and to the southern part of the great bay — " should 
be written Nahdowa-Sahging." 

The word Sahging " is derived from sahkum, which, in Odah- 
wa" language, "signifies to come out. In Ojibwa, the k is 
changed into g, and another syllable added ; and the word is 
written and pronounced sahgahum. Sahging is a participial 
noun, and implies motion as well as open space ; and every river 
has its sahging, or outlet." " It would be more proper to write " 
Sahging than Saugeen, as the name of a town at the mouth of a 
Canadian stream flowing into Lake Huron.* 

Nahdowa-Sahging " means a place where the Nahdowag, viz. 
the Mohawks or Iroquois, used to come out." " The Nahdowag, 
in their hostile expeditions against the" Odahwas of Great Mah- 
nitoolin Island, "used to go out into "the Georgian Bay of 
Lake Huron " by the Nahdowa-Sahgi " (commonly called Not- 
tawasaga) " Kiver, until they got two or three severe defeats in 
the vicinity of the Blue Mountains, by Sahgima, the most cele- 
brated warrior of the Odahwas at that time. Instead of waiting 
for the Mohawks at the island, he used to meet them at the 
Blue Mountains," which are therefore " called to this day Sah- 
gima-Odahkahwahbewin, or Sahgima's watching place. The 
last time he met the enemy there he found them occupying his 
watching place. In the evening he went to view their camp 
alone ; he saw their arms piled about the camp as if they sus- 
pected no danger, whilst their warriors were feasting and danc- 
ing. He then went for his men, and on his return he found the 
Mohawks had retired to rest. Having placed his men in order, 



* So Missisauga Strait — from which, or some other outlet of a body of water, 
we may suppose, the Red folk of that name acquired it — should doubtless 
be written Missi Sahging. [See also a. n. 72, (1).] 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 1 85 

ready for attack, he entered the camp alone, and removed the 
arms of the slumbering enemy. The Mohawks, being without 
arms, were, of course, slaughtered, except a few who were spared 
on purpose. The Odahwas cut off the heads of the slain, and 
fixed them on poles, with the faces turned towards the lake. 
Sahgima then selected a canoe, which he loaded with goods, 
provisions, and ammunition,. put the survivors in, and told them 
to say, when they got home, that they had met Sahgima on 
the top of the Blue Mountains, where he fixed the heads of their 
companions on poles, with the faces turned towards the lake, 
and that he declared his determination to fix in a similar manner 
the head of every Mohawk that he might fall in with in that 
quarter." (Prom a paper entitled Social and Warlike Customs of 
the Odahwa Indians, by F. Assikinack, a warrior of the Odah- 
was. It was read before the Canadian Institute on Jan. 23rd, 
1858, and appeared in the Canadian Journal for July, 1858.) 

16. 

COLLINGWOOD. 

This settlement was founded in the 'fall' of 1854, at the 
completion of the Ontario, Simcoe, and Huron Kailroad. A 
small steamer plies between it and Saut Ste. Marie, touching at 
Bruce Mines ; and large ' American ' steamers come to it from 
Chicago, touching at Mackinaw. 

17. 
The Battling Locust. 
" I have noticed a large locust, with dusky elytra, and bright 
yellow wings with a black border. It was very watchful, not 



186 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

permitting me to approach, it, till after many trials and much ma- 
noeuvring. It flies short distances, and often remains stationary 
on the wing over a particular spot ; and, while on the wing, 
makes a noise exactly like that of a watchman's rattle. I call 
it the Rattling Locust {(Edipoda sul/phurea)" (Gr.) The sound 
struck me as like the crackle of green wood set afire. "We 
caught one afterwards at the Niagara Falls, and saw many of 
them elsewhere. 

18. 
The May Flower. 

The Ground Laurel or Trailing Arbutus {Epigcea reverts, i. e. 
creeping ground-plant) was the first flower seen by the Pilgrim 
Fathers after landing in New England. They called it the 
May Flower, after the vessel which bad brought them to the 
New World (Ha. p. 26). Ricb. (vol. ii. p. 303) says, it " inhabits 
sandy and rocky woods in the Northern States, Canada, Nova 
Scotia, Newfoundland, and Rupert's Land, as far north as the 
Saskatchewan." A list of American works that notice this plant 
is given in Sir "W. J. Hooker's Flora Boreali-Americana, vol. ii. 
p. 42. 

I could not ascertain the botanical name of the creeper which 
we found in the ' busb ' at Collingwood. I think it may have 
been the Epigcea repens, which, under the name ' May Flower,' 
bears a touching historical interest. 

19. 

The Georgian Bay. 

This large body of water has also been named Lake Manitou- 
lin (pronounced Mahnitoolin), from the Manitoulin group of 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 187 

islands. It has fair claim to lakeship ; the soundings given in 
Bayfield's chart showing a subaqueous ridge between it and 
Lake Huron Proper. 

20. 
Gee at Mahnitoolin Island. 

(1.) The island. (2.) Its names. A. Mahnitoolin. B. Odahwa-minis. 

(1.) It "is 135 m. long*, and from 20 to 25 m. broad. The 
shores are hilly, and clothed with cedar, pine, and birch. The 
soil of the hills is stony and barren. In the interior of the island 
are about twenty lakes, some fully 15 to 18 m. long, from 8 to 10 
m. wide, and from 3 to 20 fathoms deep. They abound with 
trout, pike, white-fish, &c. The extent of arable land on the 
island is about one third of its area. The trees on the arable 
land are elm, maple, birch, cherry, and a few oak and beech. 
The climate is remarkably healthy." (Description by the Eoman 
Catholic Missionaries, given, as a note, in Hi. vol. ii. p. 18.) 

(2.) A. The following is pieced together from that Herodotean 
composition of an " Odahwaf warrior," which is cited in a. n. 
15: — 

" As far as I know, there is no such word in the languages 
spoken by the Odahwas, Ojibwas, or any of the surrounding 
tribes. Manitoulin " (the French mode of writing) " may be a 
Huron word ; not being acquainted with the Mohawk, which, I 
understand, nearly resembles the Huron or Iroquois language, I 
cannot say positively : but, so far as I can see by their alphabet, 
and printed books in their language, they never make use of the 

* Following a newspaper-account in D. p. 40, I gave, in III., f. n. e, 81 m., 
as its length. 

t He, inconsistently, ends this word with an /*, no more needed than at the 
end of Ojibwa. 



188 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

letter l * which is also wanting in the Odahwa and Ojibwa* 
alphabet, besides f, r f , v, and x. It is true there is a bay to- 
wards the south-east end of this island which we call Manido- 
waning." " The word Manido " (see a. n. 36) " denotes terror 
and irresistible power. The other part of the word, viz. waning " 
(better written wahning), " signifies a hollow or cavern, because 
there is a certain part of the bay, of which the Indians say they 
never could find the bottom. They often made the trial in 
winter, by letting down their decoy-fish — which is made of 
wood and loaded with lead, so as to cause it to sink " (see XI. 
E Envoi, and a. n. 77) — " to reach the bottom of this mysterious 
abyss ; and " " they thought it was a hollow inhabited by some 
Manido, or," in this case, " sea-god " (cf. IV. 4, XIII. ; and see 
a. n. 36). " From this circumstance they called that particular 
spot Manidowaning, which name was afterwards applied to the 
bay itself. Had the island been called Manido Island, the name 
would be perfectly intelligible. In my opinion, it was so called 
originally by the white people, but the word ' island ' was after- 
wards contracted into the syllable ' lin,' and then, by adding an- 
other 'island' after it, the name was" supposed to be "com- 
pleted." J 

B. " The Indian name of this island is Odahwa-minis, i. e. 
Odahwa Island, because it was occupied by the Odahwa In- 
dians about the time that America was discovered in the fifteenth 

century The Odahwas have never relinquished 

their claim to Manitoulin Island, and their right has been always 
acknowledged by other Indians. It will, therefore, be easily 

* Cf.XI.,f. n.b. 

t Hence the Red man has turned the word Mary into Mani (see a. n. 70), 
Montreal into Moneang (see a. n. 26), ' masque longue ' into ' maskeynongey * 
(a. n. 77). 

J Compare (e. g.) Creech Hill and Pen Hill in Somersetshire, and Water- 
Eaton in Oxfordshire. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 189 

understood why a portion of them removed to that island, the 
home of their ancestors, when their territory was sold to the 
G-overnnient of the United States. There is a branch of the In- 
dian department on the west side of the Manidowaning Bay, 
established about twenty years ago. it is said for the purpose of 
promoting civilization, education, and industry among the Indi- 
ans." This settlement, named after the bay supposed to be inha- 
bited by a water-wraith (c£ IV. -i\ was founded by Sir Francis 
B. Head. who. in 1S36. proposed to collect on the island all the 
Red Men in Upper Canada. " The scheme was a failure." says 
Mr. Hind (voL ii. p. 188), as well as the Odahwa warrior : " the 
only Indians availing themselves of the offer being some from 
the United States, and from the shores of Lake Superior and 
Lake Huron 

21. 

La Cloche. 

What may be termed La Cloche Proper is an island between 

Bfahnitoolin and the northern mainland. It is " celebrated 

for a stone, which, when struck, emits a musical or metallic 

sound " (Simp. p. 30), like that of the two colossal statues on the 

: : Egyptian Thebes.* 

The name hence given to this island has been extended to 

those mountains (h. t. 2000 f.) on the mainland, which united 

with the insular heights in the foreshortened view we _ I 



* Thev are composed of a quartzy sandstone, highly crystallized, and con- 
taining much iron. When struck, they give a metallic ring. An inscription 
shows'that the northernmost of the two —that called by the Arabs ■ Salamat/ 
or ' the speaking statue' (Belzoni) — was the famous Memnon (a corruption 
of Miamum, ' the beloved of the Supreme God'). It records the fact that Titus 
Petronius. in the reign of the Roman Emperor Dcmitian. heard the mys- 
terious cr mnonem) at sunrise. 



190 APPENDIX NOTES. 

22. 
Bbuce Mines. 

We found these mines worked by about 300 miners. The ore 
was extracted from twelve shafts, one of which was about 330 
feet deep. Buckets were let down by ropes attached to whims, 
which were generally worked by horse-power. At the pit's 
mouth the ore contains about four per cent, of pure copper. It 
is then taken on a tram-road to the crushing house, and there 
crushed to powder between large iron rollers by powerful steam- 
machinery. Then it is taken to the 'jigger- works,' put into 
' puddling- troughs,' and washed with water. The mud-paste, 
containing about twenty per cent, of pure copper, is shipped 
away in barrels, and fetches in the United States about $80 per 
ton. Smelting is the next step. For this purpose, six or seven 
years since 1500 tons were shipped to Baltimore and Buffalo. 
More recently Swansea has been its usual destination. It is now, 
however, smelted at the pit's mouth by a Montreal firm. " Their 
smelting works," says the Montreal Advertiser for Dec. 16, 1859, 
" were built originally by the Montreal Mining Company, but 
were not worked to advantage ; the present occupiers have been 
more successful, and anticipate doing an extensive business, to 
the great advantage of the lake mining-interests. The smelting 
works will turn out about thirty tons of metal per week, and 
can be easily enlarged to any required ability." 

" The metalliferous rock," writes C. (p. 126), " is sienite and 
metamorphic talc-schist, with veins of quartz. The ore consists 
of various sulphurets of copper, particularly the yellow." 

The hot look of the long dreary ridge, coupled with the 
glow of the cloudless heaven in that noon of a Canadian July, 
reminded one of the opening scene of Mr. Dickens' Little 



APPENDIX-NOTES 191 

Dorrit. It required all one's curiosity to sustain one in the 
ascent through the village, and then up the rough rocky path 
to the mines. The few raspberries (see a. n. 23) and whortle- 
berries (see a. n. 24) found were eagerly devoured. From the 
heaps of ore we picked a few particularly bright bits of what 
the miners call ' horseflesh ' and ' peacock ' ore, and were 
given by a good-natured fellow two or three rather recherche 
specimens of the mineral product, which he had kept by him in 
his cottage. 

About a mile from Bruce Mines village is "Wellington Mine, 
the more productive of the two, I understood. 

23. 

The wild Raspbebeees of the Lat'rf.nttax Lakes. 

Four Canadian varieties are given in Ha. p. 21, viz. the 
Rose-flowering Raspberry or the Alulberry (Bubus odoratus, i. e. 
scented bramble), the Dwarf ^Mulberry (Bubus triflorus, i. e. 
three-flowered bramble), the Wild Red Raspberry (Bubus stri- 
gosus, i. e. meagre bramble), and the Black Raspberry or the 
Thimbleberry (Bubus Occidentalism i. e. western bramble), the 
grains of which are smaller than those of our Blackberry. 

As one goes up St. Clary's River and rounds Sugar Island, a 
wooden building faces one, bearing the following inscription, the 
lower line of which shows on which side of the ''international " 
boundary its large letters are painted : — 

EASPBEKEY JAM. 
INTERNATIONAL BAZAAE. 

The place is called Church's Landing, from the name of the 
owner of the establishment. The berries are collected by the 



192 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

Ked folk, and preserved with the maple-sugar (see a. n. 58) ex- 
tracted from the trees on the island. No less than twelve tons 
of the jam were shipped to southern markets in the season of 
1858. 

24. 

The Whortleberry, as part of the Eed Man's Food. 

The Eed folk " collect largely," says K. (K p. 320), " the 
Canadian bellois, or English ' whortleberry.' The berries are 
generally dried by being laid on frames of ' bois blanc ' " (i. e. 
white cedar*), " in which they are suspended over a slow fire, 
and 'boucaned'" (= smoked). "When quite dry, they are 
packed in 'makaks'" (= birch-bark cases), "and mixed with 
the bread-dough. They also boil them with fish and flesh, as 
we do peppercorns. The sweet berries answer instead of sugar, 
which" becomes scarce "in winter, and is often entirely consumed 
before the fresh spring harvest. They attach much value to a 
good whortleberry year." 

A hunter, who visits the spirit-world alive, is said to have 
been refreshed with a whortleberry by his mother's spirit (ib. 
p. 223). 

25. 
St. Joseph's Island. 
This island belongs to Canada. It comprises about 90,000 
acres. Two-thirds of its area are available for settlement, and 

* "Thuja occidentalism (i.e. Western sweet-smelling tree), "American 
arbor vitce, also called * white cedar,' has its northern limit on the east side 
of the Rocky Mountains at Lac Bourbon or Cedar Lake, a dilatation of the 
Saskatchewan, lying between the 53rd and 54th parallels. Michaux mentions 
the mountains of Virginia as its southern limit " (Rich, vol ii. p. 318). I 
allude to this cedar in XII. 7, (2). From it the Canadians make excellent 
charcoal. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 1 93 

the remainder, though now swampy, may be made fair meadow- 25. 
land. The island is closely wooded. In the centre, it rises 
400 feet above the water. On the north-east coast, there is a 
safe and capacious harbour. (C. p. 28, 0. p. 878, and D. p. 42, 
where is given a succinct description of the island by Mr. T, X 
Moles worth, provincial land-surveyor.) 

26. 
St. Mast's River, oe Keetchi-Gah3ii Seebi. 

(L) Names. 

(2.) Characteristics. A. Geological. 

B. Scenic. 

C. The 'walking fish.' 

D. The raspberry-jam factory. 

(1.) The former of these names for the stream of water which names. 
flows out of Lake Superior is that with which it was christened 
by the French explorers, after the Blessed Virgin. The latter is 
the Ojibwa name, and means ' Great- Water Eiver ' (i. e. the 
river of Lake Superior). ' Keetchi-Gahmi' ( = ' Great Water ' ), the 
first part of the name, is discussed in a. n. 33. ' Seebi ' means 
' river.' Thus the Ojibwas call the^t. Lawrence ' Moneangseebi,' 
that is ' Moneang River,' Moneang being their corruption of 
Montreal, owing to their lack of the letter 'r' (see K. p. 118 ; 
and a. n. 20). So again ' Missisippi ' clearly means ' Great 
River,' the first half of that word meaning ' great,' and the 
latter (which had better be written ' -seepi') meaning 'river.' 

(2.) A. " Throughout its whole course " (" about sixty miles in charac- 
length "), " it occupies the line of junction between the igneous T1CS - 
and detrital rocks, forcibly illustrating to what an extent the 
physical features of a country are influenced by its geological 
structure" (F. and W., part i. p. 31). 




1 94 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

26 . B, " The river," says K (p. 302), " divides into several broad 
arms, which separate, unite, and then divide again. Repeatedly 
these arms collect in large pools, when they become calm, and 
then shoot in narrow passages from one lake to the other. . . 

Canoe- voyages in this wild water- labyrinth are exquisite 

On the Canadian, or eastern, side run the final spires of the Ca- 
nadian chain of mountains, which were here broken through by 
the water-gods, or byMenaboju " {alias Ninnibohzhoo, a. n. 39), 
" as the Indians say, to give the lake air. These heights are 
generally covered with forests, though, here and there, masses 
of naked primaeval rock jut out on the shore, and scatter their 
fragments over river and lakes. Some of the islands .... are 
each as large as a German county, but countless others are as 
small as a salon ; and in some places you find yourself sur- 
rounded by islands, each of which has scarcely room for a couple 
of trees. Through the midst of all this pour the crystalline 
waters of Lake Superior, here gently circling in large pools, and 
there foaming through the narrow passages like mountain-tor- 
rents. The islands and shores are still in a state of primitive 
savageness. Their interior is perfectly uninhabited and uncul- 
tivated, and so covered with swamps, blocks of stone, logs of 
wood, and rolling stumps, that the bears could not desire a better 
thicket. Even the nearest mountain- tops, which you feel in- 
clined to ascend for the sake of , the view, can only be reached 
axe and saw in hand." 

C. On the ' walking fish ' of Mud Lake see III. f. n. g. This is 
probably the same as the ' Big Water- Lizard ' or Banded Meno- 
branchus (Menobranchus lateralis), which has been found on 
night-lines set for eels, in the River Don, a stream that enters 
Lake Ontario on the eastern side of Toronto. 
The msp. On the raspberrv-iam factory, twelve miles below Saut Ste. 

berry-jam i. J Ji 

factory. 



ingfish. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 195 

Marie, see a. n. 23. It is at the northwest corner of Sugar 26. 
Island, a large island abounding in the sugar-maple (a. n. 58). 



27. 
The Canoe-birch, or Paper-birch. 
" Betula papyracea, paper-, or canoe-birch, is," says Eich. the uses 
(vol. ii. 317), in an account of five 5 North- American varieties, 
" an invaluable tree to the population of Eupert's Land." 

(1.) Its bark. (2.) Its wood. (3.) Its sap. (4.) Its habitation. 

(1.) "Its bark is indispensable for the construction of their its bark, 
canoes, and also serves for the covering of tents * in localities 
where the skins of large animals are scarce. Neatly sewed and 
ornamented with porcupine quills, it is moulded into baskets, 
bags, dishes, plates, and drinking vessels; in short, it is the 
material of which most of the light and easily transported fur- 
niture of the Crees f is formed. The ruder Tinne j use it, but 
dispense with many forms into which it is worked by their 
southern neighbours." {lb.) 

* The following is the account given by K. (p. 9) of the apakwa, i. e. roll 
of birch-bark, which " serves for the covering of" the wigwam. They " con- 
sist of a number of large quadrangular pieces of birch-bark sewn together. 
Each piece is about a yard square ; for a larger piece of good elastic bark, 
free from flaws and branch-holes, is rarely met with. Six or seven such 
pieces are sewn firmly together with cedar-bast, and then formed into rolls 
resembling the cloth in our tailors' shops. That these rolls may acquire 
greater stiffness, thin laths are sewn into each end of the strip, on which they 
can be comfortably rolled, while the end most exposed to contact is reinforced 
with a double piece of bark, and the roll tied round, so as to be easier of 
carriage." See VIII. 2. (pp. 70, 71). 

f The Crees inhabit the region on the west of the Laurentian basin. 

J The Tinne, a people composed of many tribes, extend across the northern- 
most, part of America, bordering on the Esquimaux. Sir J. Richardson has 
a chapter on them. 

02 



196 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

27. It " is," says K. (p. 145), " probably the very best writing 
material nature has produced, unaided by art. You need only 
take the bark from the tree, cut it a little into shape, and the 
page is ready. The inner side is covered with a white silky 
membrane, which receives the slightest mark made on it with a 
bone, a thorn, or a needle." A Eed Man showed K. (p. 385 — 
404) a "library of birch-bark books," containing legends of 
Menaboju, alias Ninnibohzhoo (a. n. 39), the work of his 
migoss (= 'sharp bone-pencil'). These figures are sometimes 
painted (K. p. 381), sometimes embroidered, in the well-known 
style, with the dyed quills of the American porcupine. They are 
even worked in with the teeth, a process witnessed by K. (p. 413), 
who says that, " when the designs are held up, they resemble, to 
some extent, those pretty porcelain- transparencies made as light- 
screens." I have ventured to suppose that this simple way of dis- 
tinguishing the cases of the various charms was adopted by the 
Eed Man of the legend that forms Part XIII. of Baspberry Moon. 

its wood, (2.) " The wood" of this birch is not only, like that of all the 
varieties, " highly prized for fuel" (St. p. 79), but also " serves 
for paddles, the framework of snow-shoes" (a. n. 73), "sledges, 
hatchet-helves, and occasionally for gun-stocks " (Eich. ib.). 

and its (3.) "In spring, the sap forms a pleasant sweet drink, from 
which a syrup may be manufactured by boiling. 

habita- (4.) Beyond the arctic circle it is a scarce and crooked tree, 

TION. 

but it occurs of a small size as high as the 69th parallel. It 
grows in perfection on the north shore of Lake Superior, in the 
neighbourhood of Fort William, where, owing to the ample 
supply of good bark, a manufactory of canoes for the use of the 
Hudson's Bay Company has been established. As the Kolushes 
north of Sitka use birch-bark canoes, I infer that this tree extends 
to the Pacific, but I have not seen it in the lists of plants of that 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 197 

coast. Pursh mentions Hudson Eiver as its southern limit ; 27. 
and Gray states its range as extending from New England to 
Wisconsin, but chiefly through the northern parts of that dis- 
trict. It grows in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and Labrador." 
(Eich. ib.) 

28. 

Saut Ste. Marie. 

(I.) Natural character. 

(2.) Canadian settlement: the village; shad-flies. 

(3.) ' American ' settlement. A. Town. 

B. Environs, a. Eastern. 
b. Western. 
(4.) The ancient Oijbwa settlement, and its Jesuit Mission. 

(1.) This place is the only settlement of any consequence on natural 

CHAEAC- 

St. Mary's Eiver. The river, here a little short of a mile in width, tee. 
flows for the distance of f of a mile over a sandstone ledge, 
with a depth of about 2| f. The descent is between 18J and 
21 f., according to the level of Lake Superior for the time being. 
(2.) On our way up St. Mary's Eiver, we touched at the scat- casa. 

DIAN" 

tered settlement on the British side. An H. B. C. post is its settle- 

r MENT. 

nucleus. There were but very few other houses. We landed a The vil - 

J lage. 

mail-bag, and took in wood. The deck of the steamer was covered 
with a swarm of shad-flies.* In the evening — as we lay along- shadMex. 
side the 'American' wharf, to which we crossed for coals — they 
swarmed so persistently in the cabin, that they almost put out the 
candles, and the cook had to sweep and scrape them off the 
supper-table with broom and dust-pan. 

(3.) A. The 'American' Saut Ste. Marie — at which we took 'amebi- 

CAX * 

in coal — has left the British completely in the lurch, especially settle- 



* The shad-fly is something between a fly and a moth. It has drabcoloured 
wings and moth-like legs. It is harmless ; indeed, it is of use in its genera- 
tion as a bait for trout, which abound at Saut Ste. Marie. 

o3 



198 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

28. since the commencement, and still more since the completion, of 
the canal (a. n. 29) by which ' Brother Jonathan' has extended to 
the head of Lake Superior the limits of continuous inland navi- 
gation for sea-going vessels. When we were there, the popu- 

Town. lation amounted to about 1000, but fluctuated considerably, 
owing to its consisting of Eed folk, half-breeds, unemployed 
miners, and storekeepers. It is, on a small scale, a colluvies 
gentium. It seemed full of dram-shops and bowling-alleys; 
and — what with its lonnging storekeepers, its busy bar-keepers, 
and the 'guests' smoking on the platforms of the hotels with 
their legs extended on chairs — had a most dolcefar niente aspect. 
Most of the folk neither know nor care what they will do next 
day, and spend at the bar what they have got for their last job. 

Environs. We spent a summer evening there on our way up St. Mary's 
Eiver, and about two days on our way down. In the former 
visit, we walked through a most flourishing plot of potatoes 
and a series of rich pastures below the settlement ; and, on our 
way, took a peep inside a ' fort,' which protects the American 
settlement, and commands St. Mary's Eiver. We found it a 
large enclosure, fenced in by a high whitewashed palisade. 
Within was a piece of grass, surrounded by neat cottages. 

western. In the latter, we walked along the canal, and made a little 
detour west of it. Here an evergreen swamp is backed by a 
thickly- wooded ridge. We found the ground strewn with those 
huge pieces of granite (probably carried hither, in a bygone age 
by icebergs), that, according to legend, were thrown by Hiawatha 
(alias Menaboju, alias Mnnibohzhoo) at his father, "in the 
battle they fought here" (K.* p. 413; cf. H. iv.). We also 

* Mr. Longfellow (in H. iv.) makes Mudjekeewis wield "the great 
'apukwa' " or " giant bulrush " (see a. n. 55), and Hiawatha " the masses of 
the ' wawbeek' " (i. e. rock). M. Kohl says the pieces of granite are " the 
remains of the missiles which the Indians say Menaboju and his father hurled 
at each other" 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 199 

strolled down to the rapids, and watched the men among them. 28. 
They ' hunted in couples,' one man managing the canoe, and 
his comrade spearing the fish. (See XI. E Envoi, and a. n. 77.) 
Saut Ste. Marie fills a prominent place in the Belations of the the 

x AWCIKKT 

Jesuit missionaries. It was first visited by them in 1641. gggjjj 
They found a settlement of more than 2000 Chippewas {alias . ME>T 
Ojibwas), the attraction to the spot having been the abundance 
of whitefish, and their being so easily caught in the wide and 
shallow rapids. It was again visited in 1660 and 1666. The axd :ts 

r ° Jesuit 

Chippewa settlement then became the site of a Jesuit post. mission. 
In their reports it is called Villa ad Cataractas Sanctse Mariae. 
In May, 1671, the chiefs of fourteen tribes of Eed Men, and 
the soldiers of France, assembled here in grand council. M. 
Tallon, the then Governor- General of New France, had sent 
M. de St. Lusson to take possession, in the name of the King 
of France, of all lands between the east and the west, and from 
Montreal to the Southern Sea. On the hill above the village 
the ambassador planted the cross, and displayed the arms of 
the King. The cross was previously blessed, with all due cere- 
monies, by the Superior of the Missions, and, while it was being 
raised, the ' Vexilla ' was chaunted by the White Men before the 
awed savages. The shield of France was hung from a cedar- 
post above the cross, while they were chaunting the ' ExaudiaV 
Then prayers were offered up for His Sacred Majesty, St. 
Lusson took formal possession of the lands, guns were fired, 
and other manifestations of joy displayed. Father Allouez 
made an oration to the savages. First, he pointed to the cross, 
and said a few words about the crucified Son of God. Then, point- 
ing to the other column, he enlarged on the power and glory of the 
King of France, with such an accumulation of contrasts between 
the grandeur of White civilization and the insignificance of Red 
savagery, as was well calculated to awe the impressible Red Man. 
o 4 



200 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

29. 
The Saut Ste. Marie Canal. 

(1.) Its dimensions. (2.) Its history. 

(1.) Its length is 1| m. Its depth is 12 f. Its width is 70 f. 
at bottom, and 100 f. at water-line. The average lift of the 
two locks is 17| f. (Hi. vol. i. p. 15, n.) 

(2.) It was begun in the spring of 1853 and completed in 
that of 1855. It was the work of a Company, under contract 
with the State of Michigan. The Congress of the United States 
had previously granted that State 750,000 acres of public land, 
in aid of the undertaking. This land was, by way of remune- 
ration, made over to the Company, on condition of the accom- 
plishment of the work within two years. The stone was brought 
from the township of Anderdon, on the Canadian side of Detroit 
Eiver, and from Marblehead near Sandusky (Ohio), on the S.W. 
shore of Lake Erie. 

30. 
The Entrance of Lake Superior from its Outlet. 

(1.) Gros Cap. (3.) Mamainse. 

(2.) Tequamenon Bay and River. (4.) Whitefish Point. 

(1.) C. (p. 41) thus describes the scenery at Gros Cap : — 
" Eocky points covered with vegetation, rising abruptly from 
deep water, alternate with pebble-beaches; back of this the 
land slopes gradually upward, densely covered with white pine, 
canoe-birch, and aspen, to the foot of the cliff, which rises 
steeply to the height of 700 feet, showing vertical faces of bare 
rock, and crowned on the top with ' evergreens. . . . Here we 
encamped among large aspens, and thickets of the beautiful 
white -flowering raspberry of the lakes (Euhus Nutkanus)" 



M.VIXSE. 



APPEXDIX-XOTES. 201 

(2.) Into the huge bay, on -which one is launched, comes from 30. 
the east " the rushing Taquamenaw," as Mr. Longfellow (H, iv.), S2ok 
after Dr. Schoolcraft, spells its name. eivkb 

(3.) Alamainse — as the distant headland on the right is called ma 

V ' ° Mil 

— means ' little sturgeon.' It has probably got its name from the 
coast at that point being frequented by the rock-sturgeon (see 
XI. f. n. p). C. (p. 46) speaks in strong terms of the grandeur 
of the Alaniainse heights. 

(•i. ) Gradually there rose in front of us, a little to the left, a thin white- 
line of trees. It was only when we were very near them that we PoiyT - 
could see they were based on a long low spit of sand, like that to 
which, probably, the name Toronto was originally applied (see 
a. n. 2). AVe were off "Whitefish Point, a foreland so named, 
doubtless, from its shore being a favourite resort of the whitefish 
(see a. n. 77. (1.), and XI. f. n. r). "We had entered the Saut 
Ste. Marie canal at 6 A.^r. It was now about 10 a.m. 

31. 

The sudden Stobms, the Fogs, and the Ice 
of Laxe Superior. 

(1.) Its sudden storms. (2.) Its fogs. (3.) Its freezing over. 

(1.) C. (p. 53, cf. p. 109) speaks of "the suddenness with sudds* 
which both wind and sea rise here." P. and W. (part i. p. 57) 
write: — "Sudden gusts of wind spring up on the lake, and 
hence the oldest voyageurs are most inclined to hug the shore." 
The following — from Bal., p. 255-6, cf. p. 251 — refers to the 
'traverse' of even the sheltered inlet called Thunder Bay: — 
"The weather, when we started" (from Fort William), "was 
calm and clear. . . . We had already gone a few miles of the 
distance, when a dark cloud rose on the seaward horizon. Pre- 



202 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

31, sently the water darkened under the influence of a stiff "breeze ; 
and in less than half an hour the waves were rolling and boiling 
around us like those of the Atlantic. Ahead of us lay a small 
island, about a mile distant, and towards this the canoe was 
steered; while the men urged it forward as quickly as the 
roughness of the sea would allow. Still the wind increased, 
and the island was not yet gained. Some of the waves had 
broken over the edge of the canoe, and she was getting filled 
with water ; but a kind providence permitted us to reach the 
island in safety, though not in comfort, as most of the men 
were much wet, and many of them a good deal frightened. . . . 
Three days we remained on this vile island, while the wind and 
waves continued unceasingly to howl and lash around it, as if 
they wished in their disappointment to beat it down, and 
swallow us up, island and all; but, towards the close of the 
third day, the gale moderated, and we ventured again to attempt 
the ' traverse.' This time we succeeded, and in two hours 
passed Thunder Point, on the other side of which we en- 
camped. The next day we could only travel till breakfast-time, 
as the wind again increased so much as to oblige us to put to 
shore." The following is from pp. 257-8 : — "Our voyage along 
Lake Superior was very stormy and harassing. . . . Sometimes 
we were paddling along over the smooth water, and at other 
times lying-by, while the lake was lashed into a mass of foam 
and billows by a strong gale." 
i. (2.) The fogs of Lake Superior, especially in the northern 

part, are often mentioned by C. (see pp. 72, 111, 112, 118). 
" During an extremely dense fog," at midnight, July 28 — 29, 
1857 *, the steamer of the exploring expedition sent out by the 
Canadian Government struck on a rocky islet, 1 m. S. of Michi- 

* Our fog lasted from 2 a.m. to 2 p.m. on July 15, 1858. See a. n. 37. (2.). 



APPEXDIX-XOTES. 203 

picoten Island. She was not got off till "late the following 31. 
afternoon ;" then she soon grounded on a shoal ; nor was it till 
"4 p.m. on the 30th" that she was able to resume her course 
toward Fort William. See E. E. p. 17, and Hi. vol. i. p. 11, 
where is given a view of the steamer on the rocks, and a detailed 
account of the disaster. 

The fogs of Lake Superior prevent wheat being raised at 
Fort. William (E. E. p. 68). 

(3.) " The Bishop of Montreal states .in his -journal" of a visit feeez- 

I2TGOVER 

to the Church Missionary Society's North- West American Mis- 
sions, "that it is only during an extraordinary concurrence of 
circumstances that the whole of Lake Superior can freeze over. 
He was assured that this remarkable event happened in the 
winter of 1843, after a calm of four days, and during intensely 
cold weather. No other instance is said to be on record." (Hi. 
vol. i. p. 21; cf. XI. f. n. m.) 



32. 

SCHKXEE- ARCHIBI -XTJNG, 
AND THE ObNAMENTAX MDsEEALS OF The WatER-WrAITH 's HOME. 

(1.) Schkuee-archibi-kung. 

A. General description. 

B. Names ; legends of Ninnibohzhoo. 

C. Characteristics. 

D. The mention by the'Jesuits. 

(2.) The ornamental* minerals of The Water- Wraith's Home [IV. 4. (4.)]. 

(1.) A. The following extracts are culled from F. and "W. : — schkxee- 
" The Pictured Eocks may be described, in general terms, as kc>-g. 
a series of sandstone bluffs extending along the shore of Lake 

* In the map at the end of this book I have placed before my reader's eyes 
(oculis subjectafidelibus) such a view of the disposition of the metallic wealth 
of Lake Superior, as does away with the need of any verbal description here. 



204 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



32. Superior for about 5 m., and rising, in most places, vertically 
dtscrif- fr° m ^ ne wa "ter, without any beach at the base, to a height vary- 
wn ' ing from 50 to nearly 200 f. There are two features which 
communicate to the scenery a wonderful and almost unique cha- 
racter. These are, first, the curious manner in which the cliffs 
have been excavated and worn away by the action of the lake, 
which for centuries has dashed an oceanlike surf against their 
base ; and, second, the equally curious manner in which large 
portions of the surface have been coloured by bands of brilliant 
hues. 
Names; B. "It is from the latter circumstance that the name by which 
these cliffs are known to the American traveller is derived; 
while that applied to them by the French voyageurs ('Les 
Portails') is derived from the former, and by far the most 
striking peculiarity. The term Pictured Bocks has been in use 
for a great length of time, but when it was first applied we have 
been unable to discover. The Indian name applied to these 
cliffs, according to our ' voyageurs J is SchJcuee-archibi-Jcung, or 
* The end of the rocks,' which seems to refer to the fact that, in 
descending the lake, after having passed them, no more rocks 
legends of are seen along the shore. Our voyageurs had many legends to re- 

Ninni- 

bohzhoo. lofcQ of the pranks of the Menni-boujou (a. n. 39) in these caverns, 
and in answer to our inquiries seemed disposed to fabricate 
stories without end of the achievements of this Indian deity. 

character- C. " We will describe the most interesting points in the series, 

istics. 

proceeding from west to east. On leaving Grand Island har- 
Perpendi bour, high cliffs are seen to the east, which form the commence- 

cular ° 

cliffs. nient of the series of rocky promontories, which rise vertically 
from the water to the height of from 100 to 125 f., covered with 

smaii a dense canopy of foliage. Occasionally a small cascade may be 
seen falling from the verge to the base in an unbroken curve, or 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 205 

gliding down the inclined face of the cliff in a sheet of white 32. 
foam. The rocks at this point begin to assnme fantastic shapes ; 
but it is not until having reached Miners' Eiver that their strik- 
ing peculiarities are observed. Here the coast makes an abrupt castie-uke 

rock. 

turn to the eastward, and just at the point where the rocks 
break off and the friendly sand-beach begins, is seen one of the 
grandest works of nature in her rock-built architecture. "We 
gave it the name of * Miners' Castle,' from its singular resem- 
blance to the turreted entrance and arched portal of some old 
castle— for instance, that of Dumbarton. The height of the ad- 
vancing mass, in which the form of the Gothic gateway may be 
recognised, is about 70 f., while that of the main wall forming 
the background is about 140 f. 

" Beyond the sand beach at Miners' River the cliffs attain an cuffs 

curved 

altitude of 173 f., and maintain a nearly uniform height for a 
considerable distance. The cliffs do not form straight lines, but 
rather arcs of circles, the space between the projecting points 
having been worn out in symmetrical curves, some of which are 
of large dimensions. To one of the grandest and most regularly 
formed we gave the name of ' The Amphitheatre.' Looking to 
the west, another projecting point — its base worn into cave-like 
forms — and a portion of the concave surface of the intervening 
space are seen. 

" It is in this portion of the series that the phenomena of and 
colours are most beautifully and conspicuously displayed. The 
prevailing tints consist of deep-brown, yellow, and grey — burnt- 
sienna and French-grey predominating. There are also bright 
blues and greens, though less frequent. All of the tints are 
fresh, brilliant, and distinct, and harmonize admirably with 
one another, which, taken in connection with the grandeur of 
* the arched and caverned surfaces on which they are laid, and 



206 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

32. the deep and pure green of the water which heaves and swells at 
the base, and the rich foliage which .waves above, produce an 
effect truly wonderful. They are not scattered indiscriminately 
over the surface of the rock, but are arranged in vertical and 
parallel bands, extending to the water's edge. The mode of 
origin their production is undoubtedly as follows : — Between the bands 

of the 

colours. or strata of thick-bedded sandstone there are thin seams of shaly 
materials, which are more or less charged with the metallic 
oxides, iron largely predominating, with here and there a trace 
of copper. As the surface-water permeates through the porous 
strata it comes in contact with these shaly bands, and, oozing 
out from the exposed edges, trickles down the face of the cliffs, 
and leaves behind a sediment, coloured according to the oxide 
which is contained in the band in which it originated. It can- 
not, however, be denied that there are some peculiarities which 
it is difficult to explain by any hypothesis. 

Fading " On first examining the Pictured Kocks, we were forcibly 

of the . . . ' , 

colours, struck with the brilliancy and beauty of the colours, and won- 
dered why some of our predecessors, in their descriptions, had 
hardly adverted to what we regarded as their most characteristic 
feature. At a subsequent visit we were surprised to find that 
the effect of the colours was much less striking than before ; 
they seemed faded out, leaving only traces of their former bril- 
liancy, so that the traveller might regard this as an unimportant 

and its feature in the scenery. It is difficult to account for this change, 

cause. 

but it may be due to the dryness or humidity of the season. If 
the. colours are produced by the percolation of the water through 
the strata, taking up and depositing the coloured sediments, as 
before suggested, it is evident that a long period of drouth 
would cut off the supply of moisture, and the colours, being 
no longer renewed, would fade, and finally disappear. This* 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 207 

explanation seems reasonable, for at the time of our second 32. 
visit the beds of the streams on the summit of the table-land 
were dry. 

" It is a curious fact, that the colours are so firmly attached Durability 

' . J % of the 

to the surface that they are very little affected by rains or the colours, 
dashing of the surf, since they were, in numerous instances, 
observed extending in all their freshness to the very water's 
edge. 

" Proceeding to the eastward of 'the Amphitheatre,' we find caverns, 
the cliffs scooped out into caverns and grotesque openings, of the 
most striking and beautiful variety of forms. In some places Detached 
huge blocks of sandstone have become dislodged and accumulated 
at the base of the cliff, where they are ground up and the frag- 
ments borne away by the ceaseless action of the surge. To a 
striking group of detached blocks the name of ' Sail Eock ' has « sail 
been given, from its striking resemblance to the jib and main- 
sail of a sloop when spread — so much so, that when viewed from 
a distance, with a full glare of light upon it, while' the cliff in 
the rear is left in the shade, the illusion is perfect. The height 
of the block is about 40 f. 

" The same general arched and broken line of cliffs borders 

the coast for 1 m. to the eastward of ' Sail Eock,' where the most 

imposing feature in the series is reached. This is the Grand «Le Grand 

r 
Portal — ' Le Grand Portair oiXh.z'voyageurs? The main body of 

the structure consists of a vast mass of a rectilinear shape, pro- 
jecting out into the lake about 600 f., and presenting a front of 
300 or 400 f., and rising to a height of about 200 f. An en- 
trance has been excavated from one side to the other, opening 
out into large vaulted passages which communicate with the 
great dome, some 300 f. from the front of the cliff. 'The Grand 
Portal,' which opens out on the lake, is of magnificent dimen- 



, Pnrtail.' 



208 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

32. sions, being about 100 f. in height, and 168 f. broad at the water 
level. The distance from the verge of the cliff over the arch to 
the water is 133 f., leaving 33 f. for the thickness of the rock 
above the arch itself. The extreme height of the cliff is about 
50 f. more, making in all 183 f. It is impossible, by any arrange- 
ment of words, or by any combination of colours, to convey an 
adequate idea of this wonderful scene. The vast dimensions of 
the cavern, the vaulted passages, the varied effects of the light 
as it streams through the great arch and falls on the different 
objects, the deep emerald green of the water, the unvarying 
swell of the lake keeping up a succession of musical echoes, the 
reverberations of one's own voice coming back with startling 
effect, all these must be seen, and heard, and felt, to be fully 
appreciated. 
La " ' The Chapel ' — 'La Chapelle ' of the ' voyageurs' — if not the 

Chapelle. 

grandest, is among the most grotesque, of Nature's architecture 
here displayed. Unlike the excavations before described, which 
occur at the water's edge, this has been made in the rock at a 
height of 30 or 40 f. above the lake. The interior consists of a 
vaulted apartment, which has not inaptly received the nameit bears. 
An arched roof of sandstone, from 10 to 20 f. in thickness, rests 
on four gigantic columns of rock, so as to leave a vaulted apart- 
ment of irregular shape, about 40 f. in diameter, and about the 
same in height. The columns consist of finely stratified rock, 
and have been worn into curious shapes. At the base of one of 
them an arched cavity or niche has been cut, to which access is 
had by a flight of steps formed by the projecting strata. The 
disposition of the whole is such as to resemble very much the 
pulpit of a church ; since there is overhead an arched canopy, 
and in front an opening out toward the vaulted interior of the 
chapel, with a flat tabular mass in front, rising to a convenient 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 209 

height for a desk, while on the right is an isolated block, which 32. 
not inaptly represents an altar ; so that, if the whole had been 
adapted expressly for a place of worship, and fashioned by the 
hand of man, it could hardly have been arranged more appropri- 
ately. It is hardly possible to describe the singular and unique 
effect of this extraordinary structure ; it is truly a temple of na- 
ture Its excavation must be referred to a period when 

the waters of the lake stood at a higher level." 

D. The Jesuit Relation for 1660-1670 (Da.) mentions " an Mention 

v ' by the 

oxide of copper, which is said to come from the crevices of Jesuits - 
certain rocks." P. and W. consider this to refer, as it can only, 
to ' the Pictured Bocks.' 

(2.) By way of objection, it maybe alleged that neither "ser- the 
pentine" nor " ruby and sapphire " have, as yet, been found on mesial 

J rr J ■> MIXEEAL* 

the coasts or islands of Lake Superior, nor, possibly, any nearer watee- 
than in the mineral region between Kingston and Ottawa, But home. 
who can pretend to say that they do not exist at the bottom of 
the huge lake ? Besides, who dares limit to that body of water 
the locomotive powers of the " Meemogovissiooees," when they 
collected ornaments for ' the Water- Wraith's home ' ? Why should 
they be less free than the fairy in The Midsitmmcr-NigM $ 
Bream ? who sings : — 

" Over hill, over dale, 

Thorough bush, thorough briar, 
Over park, over pale, 

Thorough flood, thorough fire, 
I do wander everywhere, 
Swifter than the moones sphere." 

On the chlorastrolite, see a, n. 41. 



2 1 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



33. 

The Eed Man's Names for Lake Superior, 
and their components. 

(].) Compounds = ' Big (or « Great '*) Water,' i. e. Big (or Great) Lake. 

A. The compounds, a. " Kitchi-gummi," &c. b. " Machigummie." 

B. Their components, a. " Kitchi-," &c. b. " -gummi," &c. 

(2.) A compound conjectured to be = 'Great-Outlet Water,' i.e. Great-. 
Outlet Lake. 

A. The compound (" Missisawgaiegon "). 

B. Its components, a. " Missi-" b. "-sawgaie-" c. "-gon." 

C. Conclusion. 

KitcM- (1.) A. a. " Kitchi-gummi " is the form in which the name is 

gummi, 

#c., an i giyen by the Jesuit missionaries, who, on reaching ' the Saut ' 
late in 1641, heard of the existence of a lake beyond so named. 
" Keetcheegahmi " is the form in B. (vol. i. p. 127). " Gritchef 
Grumee " is the form adopted by L. in H. So he has " G-itche 
Manito " ( = ' Grreat Spirit '). He takes his words, as well as the 
bases of his legends, from Sch., I believe. 

" Kitchi- Grami " is the form in K. He writes also " Kitchi- 
Manitou " ( = ' Grreat Spirit ') and " Kitchi-Mokoman " ( = ' Big 
Knife,' i. e. Yankee : see XI. f. n. b). 

MacJa- $• " Machigummie " is the name mentioned by 0. (p. 125). 

unravelled B. a. The first half of these compounds means ' biff,' or 'great/ 

Kitchi, &c. . : 

" Machi " will be mentioned presently, 
-prumrni, b. The latter half means ' water.' It appears in Kenocami f , 
the name of a lake which contributes to the Eiver Saguenay. 
The plural is formed by the suffix^ J or ng. Thus we have ' addik- 
kummig' (or -koomig), or 'atiJcameg (= ' deer of the waters,' 
i.e. whitensh: see XI. f. n. a). So, again, we have "Mitchi- 
gaming" (K. p. 377), which is = 'Great "Waters,' and has been 

* " Great Water" is the rendering in IV. 1, and in VI. 2. In all ottter 
places " Big Water " appeared the more suitable. 

f The Odahwa dialect has k (or hard c) where the Ojibwa has£ (see a. n. 
15). Hence, possibly, the forms -cami, -earning, and -hummig. 

% Thus, Nahdowa becomes Nahdowag (see a. n. 15). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 211 

shortened by the French (or, possibly, by the Eed people them- 33. 
selves) into "Michigan (see XII. f. n. b) ; — so we have Tama- 
gamingue and Temis-caming, as are usually, though unsatis- 
factorily, written the names of two large lakes, which contribute 
to the Kiver Ottawa. 

(2.) A. " Missisawgaiegon " is mentioned by B. (vol. i. p. 128). Missisav- 
as a name of Lake Superior. 

B. I would venture to unravel this knotty compound into three «»- 
threads. We will write it, for the moment, Missi-sawgaie-gon. 

a. The following forms are = 'big' or 'great,' being pro- Missi. 
bably dialectic varieties, except where the difference is only one 

of spelling : — Missi (see a. n. 26, 35), Mishi (see a. n. 35), 
Mishe (as in the Mishe Mokwa, = ' Great Bear,' of H. ii.), Micha 
(see a. n. 72), Michi (see a. n. 35, 72), Mitchi (as in Mitchi 
Gahming, the longer form of Michigan), Machi (as in O.'s 
Machi-gummie). On Matchi and Mitche see a. n. 36. (2.) A. c. j6. 
These forms have a noteworthy resemblance to the Aryan 
words fMeyas, magnus, macht, might, onicMe, &c. 

b. I would conjecture that -sawgaie- is merely such a corrupt -sawgaie- 
mode of writing as would appear in a long compound taken 
down, possibly by an illiterate settler, from the lips of the Eed 

folk, whose dialects have, indeed, but recently been crystallized 
in print. The latter half of the word Mi&sisauga ( = ' Great Out- 
let ' ) — the name, as commonly * written, of the eastern of the 
three outlets of the North Channel (III. f. n. e) — is but another 
form of sahging ( = ' outlet'), which is said, by the " Odahwa 
warrior" cited in a. n. 15, to be the correct mode of writing 
Saugeen.f He himself writes sahgi in a compound, and this 

* It is also written Missisagua. MissUakga would be more correct. 

f In this case (see a. 11. 15) the word is also written Saguinc. This is 
clearly a French mode of writing. Saguenay (see a. n. 46) and Saginaw 
(see XIV. f. n. b) are, I apprehend, the white man's developments of tins 
word. It is written Seguine, as the name of a stream flowing into the 
Georgian Bay from the east. 

P 2 



2 1 2 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

33, would soon become sawgi, through the custom of expressing the 
ah in the Ked Man's words by au, and then pronouncing it aw, 
not as au in ' aunt.' [See a. n. 72. (1.).] 
-gon. c. As to -gon, it appears in Neepi-<7<m (a. n. 69). We may 

compare the -gan in Micln^m (see XII. f. n. b). 
Iu C. What more probable than that the Eed folk on its shores, 

leaning, or in the region below, applied the first two parts of this com- 
pound — as I have unravelled it — to the huge stream from Lake 
Superior into Lake Huron, and the whole compound to the 
expanse above ? So Missi-sawgaie-gon would be = ' Great-Outlet 
Water,' i. e. Great-Outlet Lake. 



34. 

The Caretboo (or Caribou)* 

(1.) Its name. 

(2.) Its varieties and its characteristics. 
(3.) How it is killed. 

(4.) Its uses after death. A. For defence from the cold ' 
B. For food. a. The venison. 

b. ' Pemmican.' 

c. The tongue. 

d. The tripe. 

e. The paunch. 

(1.) The English commonly write the word 'cariboo' or 
' carriboo.' The French write it ' caribou. 1 It is a Franco- 
Canadian corruption of carre boeuf rather than, I apprehend, of 
cerf boeuf, and is the name by which the North- American rein- 
deer goes among the European settlers and among the * Indians ' 
who hold intercourse with them. 

(2.) The Eein-deer (the Cervus T<mmfeof Linnseus)— called 

* This note is, substantially, compiled from Mr. C. Knight's English 
Cyclopcedidy Natural History> vol. i. ; art. Cervidce, 



. APPENDIX-NOTES. 21S 

caribou* (or ' carriboo') in America — is one of the two classes 34, 
into which Dr. J. E. Gray divides the Deer of the Snowy Re- £^e AC _ 
gions, which are distinguished by their muzzle being very broad ?fcS S " 
and entirely covered with hair, and by their horns being ex- 
panded and palmate, while the fawns are not spotted. The 
Rein-deer has a large basal interior snag to the horns close on 
the crown or burr, and has no muffle. In size it varies very 
much. Dr. J. E. Gray divides it into- five kinds, viz. : — 

1. The Woodland Caribou. — This animal is " confined to the 
woody and more southern district" (Rich. F. B., p. 299). C. 
(p. 74) says of the northern shore of Lake Superior : — " Cari- 
bous are found all through this region, but not in great abun- 
dance. An Indian, who passed last winter " [i. e. that of 1847-8] 
" on Isle St. Ignace" [a. n. 38], "killed twenty-five, and was 
thought to have done very well." See IV. f. n. a. 

2. The Great Caribou of the RocJcy Mountains. — This animal 
has given its name to that district of British Columbia, in which 
gold has recently been found in such large and solid nuggets 
and so near the surface, that the wealth of California is, it is 
said, thrown into the shade. This district is about 500 miles 
northeast of the Pacific coast and the mouth of Eraser 
River. 

3. The Labrador (or Polar) Caribou. — This seems to be the 
Barren-ground Caribou of Sir John Richardson (ib. ), which he 
speaks of as " retiring to the woods only in the winter, but 
passing the summer on the coast of the Arctic Seas, or on the 
Barren Grounds, so often," he says, " mentioned in this work." 
Of this and the Woodland Caribou he says : — "There are two 

* "Charlevoix (torn. v. p. 191) says that the Canadian caribou differs in 
nothing from the renne of Buffon, except in the colour of its skin, which is 
brown or reddish. La Hontan calls the caribou a species of wild ass; 
Charlevoix says its form resembles that of the ass, but that it at least equals 
the stag in agility." (War.) 

P 3 



214 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

34. well-marked and permanent varieties of Caribou, that inhabit 
the Fur Countries." 

4. The Siberian Rein-Deer. 

5. The Newfoundland Caribou. 

The ' carriboos ' travel in herds varying in number from 8 or 
10 to 200 or 300. Their daily excursions are generally made 
toward the quarter from which the wind blows. 

how (3.) The ' Indians ' kill the ' carriboos ' with bows and arrows 

or guns, sometimes approaching by means of a disguise, some- 
times taking advantage of rocks or other shelter, and always 
greatly assisted by the curiosity and unsuspecting nature of 
these animals. They also take them in snares, or spear them 
as they are crossing rivers or lakes. One ' Indian ' family will 
sometimes destroy 200 or 300 in a few weeks.* 

uses (4.) There is hardly a part of the animal that is not turned to 

AFTER • 

death, some use. 

warmth A. Clothing made of the skin is so impervious to the cold, 

of its 

skin - that, with the addition of a blanket of the same material, any 
one so clothed may safely bivouac on the snow through the most 
intensely cold night of the arctic winter. (Kich. F. B.) 

Food. B. a. The venison, when in high condition, has several inches 

The 

venison, of fat on the haunches, and is said to equal that of the fallow- 
deer in the best British parks. {lb.) 
• Pemmi- b. ' Pemmican ' is formed by pouring one-third part of melted 

can.' 

fat over the pounded meat, and incorporating them well to- 
gether, {lb.) 

* Sir John Franklin relates the ingenious'methods pursued by the * Copper 
Indians ' and ' Dog- Ribs.' Captain Lyon {Private Journal, p. 336) gives a 
graphic account of the method of the Esquimaux, who take them in traps, 
ingeniously formed of ice and snow. Captain James Ross says that the 
natives of Boothia seldom hunt these animals in the spring, and that at that 
time the bow and arrow is the only method of killing them ; but that in the 
autumn, on the return of the animals from the north in fine condition, they 
destroy them in great numbers,— some of the party driving them intothe 
water, while others, in canoes, spear them at leisure. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 215 

c. The tongue is considered such good eating, that the animal 34. 
is often killed for the sake of that part of it only. (Eieh. F. B.) £n| U e. 

d. The tripe also is considered a delicacy. (lb.) The trip*. 

e. The paunch, with its contents, is highly prized by the The 
Esquimaux. (lb.) Captain Kennedy (see III. f. n. a) told us 
that they boil up with the animal's blood the ' carrageen moss ' 
found in the paunch, and find this porridge very nutritious and 

a great preservative against thirst. The natives of Boothia get 
their only vegetable food from the stomach of the ' carriboo ' 
(Eieh. ik). 

35. 

MlSSI PlCQOATONG (OR MlCHITICOTEN). 

(1.) The meaning and application of the name. 
<2.) The bay, and the H.B.C. * fort ' at its head. 
(3.) The island. 

a. Its climate. 

b. Its wooded heights, 

c. Its lakes, and their fish. 

d. Its harbour, and the fish thereof. 

e. Its minerals (' native copper ' with silver, pitchstone, and agates.) 
/. The earliest account of it and its copper. 

(1.) Missipicooatong * — as the name is written by the Jesuit name. 
missionary (Da.), who took it down from the lips of the Ked 
people — probably means Big Sandy Bay. C, p. 60, writes : — 
"The name Michipicotin" (which, he says in p. 54, is pronounced Meaning 
Mishi-picptn) "was declared by some of the men to signify Big appUca. 
Sandy Bay, certainly quite descriptive of the place ; but they 
were not unanimous, some of them maintaining that nobody 
could say what it meant." At all events, missi is ='big' (see 

* His countrymen afterwards wrote Michipicoten. For -en English 
writers have sometimes written -on, or, less correctly, -in ; while Mishi- 
has been written instead of Michi-. 

p 4 



2 1 6 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

35. a. n. 33), and pic, which is pronounced peek, is = 'sand' or 
'mud' (see a. n. 69). 

The name has been extended from the bay to the large island 
in front of it. 

the bay, (2.) The bay is of note only as giving its name to a H. B. C. 

^fos.t) 'fort' (see a. n. 47) at its head. Michipicoton Fort, as it is 
called (Bal. pp. 31 — 2), is the basis of communication between 
Hudson's Bay and Lake Superior. It is about 300 m. distant 
from Moose Fort (the 'depot' of the 'southern department' 
(see a. n. 47) of the H. B. C.'s territories. Moose Fort is at 
the mouth of Moose Kiver, a stream that empties into the head 
of James' Bay, the southern part of Hudson's Bay (an oceanic 
inlet about six times as large as Lake Superior); The first 
fifteen miles of the journey from Lake Superior to Hudson's 
Bay is accomplished by paddling up as far as the 'falls' of the 
Michipicoton Biver, which rises near the source of Moose Kiver. 
A 'portage' road then commences across the high ground that 
forms the common watershed of Hudson's Bay and Lauren- 
tian waters. The interval between the great freshwater lake 
and the oceanic bay has been traversed in six days, but usually, 
occupies from eight to ten. 

the (3.) a* According to our pilot, who had lived fifteen years on 

ISLAND. v ' ° 

cumate. ^ shores of Lake Superior, the ' voyageurs' affirm that the 
climate of this island is, on account of its dryness, more pleasant in 
winter than that of 'the Saut,' or even that of places further 
south. 

wooded , The island is traversed, from east to west, by a chain of 

heights. 7 7 ^ 

rocky heights, composed of greenstone, and thickly-wooded down 
to the water's edge, the trees being chiefly maple and ash. At 
the eastern extremity of the island, the ridge rises 300 f. above 
the lake ; further on, it attains an elevation of 500 f. ; while 
in the west it culminates in a height of 800 f. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 217 

c. Our pilot said that the island contained sixteen lakes, full 35. 

of ' speckled trout.' alatuir 

d. The southern coast of the island possesses a particularly Harbour . t 
commodious land-locked harbour, that admits vessels drawing jSa, * 
fifteen feet of water (Bay.). This is called Michipicoten Har- 
bour par excellence. Our pilot said that it abounded in the 
great lake-trout and in ' whitefish' (see XI., f. n. q, r). In six 
weeks he had filled 175 large barrels with fish, chiefly of the 
former species. 

e. I collect from Sir W. E. Logan's catalogue (which may be Minerals. 
found in Br.) that the island contains native copper with which 
silver is mingled, — stone from which black glass can be made, pitch- 

stone. 

— and agates. 

Copper. " The product of the Michipicoten Mine is," says copper, 
the Montreal Advertiser of Dec. 16, 1859, "native copper, sUver - 
found in small and large masses in the body of an amygdaloid 
rock, and not in veins and lodes like the ores." 

Agates. After the misadventure which befel the Ked Eiver Agates. 
Expedition, " the Agate Islands in Michipicoten Harbour were 
visited, and very beautiful agates found in great abundance in 
the trap ; but it was difficult to procure gocfft specimens on 
account of the hardness of the 'matrix.' " (Hi. vol. i. p. 13.) 
/. The following (from Da.) is the earliest account we have Earliest 

account 

of the island and its copper : — " We have learned from the °/ na ^ it3 
savages some secrets, which they did not wish at first to com- copper - 
municate, so that we were obliged to use some artifice. "We do 
not however vouch for everything in the following account. 
After entering the lake, the first place met with containing 
copper is an island about forty or fifty leagues from ' the Saut,' 
towards the north shore, opposite a place called Missipicooatong. 
The savages relate that it is a floating island, being sometimes 
near and at others afar off. Along time ago four savages landed 



218 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

35. there, having lost their way in a fog*, with which the island is 
frequently surrounded. It was previous to their acquaintance 
with the French, and they knew nothing of the use of kettles 
and hatchets. In cooking their meals, as is usual among the 
savages, by heating stones and casting them into a birch-bark 
pail containing water, they found that they were almost all 
copper. After having completed their meal, they hastened to 
reembark, for they were afraid of the lynxes and hares, which 
here grow to the size of dogs. They took with them copper 
stones and plates, but had hardly left the shore before they 
heard a loud voice exclaiming in an angry tone, ' Who are the 
thieves that carry off the cradles and the toys of my children ? ' 
They were very much surprised at the sound, not knowing 
whence it came. One said it was the thunder ; another that it 
was a certain goblin called Missibizi, the Spirit of the Waters" 
(see a. n. 20, 36 ; and cf. IV. 4, V. 1, and XIII.), " like Neptune 
among the heathen ; another that it came from the Memogo- 
vissioois" (cf. IV. 4, V. 1), " who are marine-men, living con- 
stantly under the water, like the Tritons and Sirens, having 
long hair, reaching to the waist ; and one of the savages as- 
serted that he had actually seen such a being. At any rate, this 
extraordinary voice produced such fear that one of them died 
before landing ; shortly afterwards two others died ; and one 
alone reached home, who, after having related what had hap- 
pened, also died. Since that time, the savages have not dared 
to visit the island, or even to steer in that direction." The 



* " Mr, Wilson, a fellow-passenger, who has resided two summers on 
Michipicoten Island, says that the Lake Superior summer-fogs begin about 
9 a.m., and disappear generally at 10 or 11 p.m.; but sometimes they last for a 
week. They are low, and from the mountain on Miehipicoten Island, at an 
elevation of 800 f. above the lake, they may be seen, resting on its waters, 
as far as the eye can reach" (Hi. vol. i. p. 11). On the fogs of Lake 
Superior, see a. n. 31. (2.). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 219 

Father (say F. and W.) attempts to explain this superstition by 35. 
supposing that they were poisoned by using the copper boulders * 
in cooking their meat, and that the supernatural voice was an 
echo of their own, and that the vanishing reappearance of the 
island was due to fogs and haze which hang about it. He 
concludes by adding that it is a common belief among the 
savages that the island contains an abundance of copper, but 
that no one dares approach it. 

36. 
The Mahnitoos. 

(1.) The word mahnitoo. 

A. Its orthography. 

B. Its meaning. 
(2.) The Mahnitoos. 

A. The Keetchi Mahnitoos (= Great Mahnitoos). 

a. Their realms, and their comparative power. 

b. Keetchi Mahnitoo {par excellence), 

c. Matchi Mahnitoo. «. The being so called (as so named, as 

Missibeezi,and as the Spirit of Keetchi Gahmi). /S. The 
meaning of his name Matchi Mahnitoo. 

B. The Little Mahnitoos. 

C. Inanimate objects, e.g. a. Trees and plants. 

b. Rocks and stones. 
(3.) The usual sacrifices to the Mahnitoos. 

A. The dog. 

B. Tobacco. 



WORD 

Mah- 
:nitoo. 



(1.) A. The word is generally written maniton, after the the 
French pioneers of immigration. Mr. Longfellow (H. i.), who j 
follows Dr. Schoolcraft, writes rnanito in his " G-itche Manito " 
(= < Great Spirit': see a. n. 33). An Odahwa "warrior" (see onho- 
a. n. 15, 20) says we should write mahnido. May not these 
three forms be dialectical varieties, as I am inclined to view, to 
some extent, the different shapes of the word, which I myself 

* The superstitious reverence with which the Red Man regards these 
copper-boulders is mentioned in the Reports of the Jesuit missionaries, and in 
K. pp. 61-64. 



220 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

36. took down, as Ninnibohshoor (VI. 4, and a. n. 39), from the lips 
of a man who had passed fifteen years of his life on the shores 
of Lake Superior ? 
Meaning, B. According to the Odahwa " warrior," the word " denotes 

terror and irresistible power," — in short, is = ' dread being.' 
SiteM ( 2 -) A - a - " An old Indian told me," says K (p. 59), "there 
to«. wt * were six Kitchi-Manitous" ( = • Great Mahnitoos ' : see a. n. 33). 
Realms. " One lived in the heavens, one in the water, and the other four 
compara- north, south, east, and west.' 55 ' They were all great ; but the 

tive . 

power. ^ wo i n heaven and the water were the most powerful." 
M e ahnLo ^ "Although," says K. (p. 58), "the American Indians are 
cSfence). frequently praised for their belief in one Great Spirit, and, 
though they mention him so repeatedly at their festivals, the 
question whether they are really monothe'ists is a very moot one. 
Their Kitchi-Manitou does not fare much better than the 
Optimus Maximus of the Komans. He presides in heaven, but 
is at times unheeded here on earth, where coarse natural strength 
and terrestrial objects are deified." 

To say " he presides in heaven," seems inconsistent with the 
statement of M. Kohl's " old Indian," who represents heaven as 
his province, not as his court. The Keetchi Mahnitoo, par ex- 
cellence, of the Ked Man — like that of the Aryan theologies — 
is literally " the most high," as being the spirit of the sky. 
Matcu c. a. The Great Mahnitoo that lives in the water is called 

Mahnitoo. 

Matchi Mahnitoo, (K. pp. 49, 422). He "resides at the bot- 
tom t of the water" (K. p. 422). He is *the evilj spirit." 

* These are, of course, the four winds, Kabeebonokka, Shahwondahzy, 
Wahbun, and Mudjeykeewis (see V. 11, VI. 1, VI. 5, X. 4, XIV. 2), which 
appear, with slight differences of spelling, in H. 

t Compare what is said by the Odahwa " warrior" of the superstition about 
a very deep part of "a bay towards the south-east end of ".Great Mahnitoolin 
Island (a. n. 20). 

% Thus the word ' Mcfc,' which, in our vulgar term ' Old Nick,' is used as 
= ' the Devil,' is properly = 'Water-Spirit.' We find it in the German Nix, 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 22 1 

{lb.) He "is spiteful"* (K. p. 62). Storms on the lakes 36. 
are attributed to him.f It is — according to a Ked Man with The being, 

" as so 

whom K. (p. 236) conversed — "« cause du Mat chi- Manitou" named ' 
that the dream-beds (see a, n. 74) are made in " the finest and 
tallest trees," and " sometimes more than twenty feet above the 
ground." The Ked Man "gave me," says K., "no further 
explanation of this laconic reply, and left me to imagine that in 
all probability, according to the Indian theory, the good spirits 
and salutary dream-genii reside high in the air, while th.Q Matchi 
Manitou wanders about on the ground and annoys people. At 
any rate, the latter has his snakes, toads, and other animals" 

[cf-Cfje ebtftfreama: atrtr fyz TOitn>Btnfl], "against 

which the dreamer," since he "is not prepared for hunting and 
defence, cannot protect himself." 

Father Dablon, in the Jesuit Relation for 1660 — 1670, speaks asMissi. 

beezi, 

of the reverence and dread felt for this imaginary being under 



Nixe; the Old High German has it in 'the shape of Nikhus or Nichus ; the 
Norse has it in that of Nikrj the Danish has it in that of Nok j while Mr. 
Matthew Arnold has sung of it as " the Neckan" of " the Baltic Sea" and 
" the river pool." It may, perhaps, claim kinship with the Greek N^'ioihs 
(Naiads), a word connected with the Greek viiv, vrix®) vr,(r<r<x,, v«.u, volfjuz,, 
vr,<ro$ (?), vyv$ (?;, the Latin nare, natare, navis (?), and the Sanscrit snd (?) 

* Thus, at a 'palaver' between the agents of the U.S. Government and 
"the principal tribes of the Ojibbeways residing round" Lake Superior, a 
Red Man says : " People say that we have debts . . . where these debts come 
from I know not. Perhaps from the water !" K. (p. 55), reporting this, says : 
*' I must here remind the reader that the Ojibbeways transfer the evil 
principle to the depths of the lake." 

t The following is from P. (p. 314;:—" Strong gusts of wind came from 
the north, and when the fleet of canoes were half-way to the island " [Mack- 
inaw] " it blew a gale, the waves pitching and tossing with such violence 
that the frail and heavy-laden vessels were much endangered. Many voices 
were raised in prayer to the Great Spirit, and a dog was thrown into the 
lake, as a sacrifice, to appease the angry manitou of the waters." 

It is worthy of notice that they sacrificed the dog — their most highly 
esteemed possession, as will be stated presently — to the Lord of the Waters 
and not to the Lord of Heaven. This shows that practically their religion 
resembles, of the two, Manichaeanism rather than Unitarianism. 



222 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

36. the name "Missibizi" (see a. n. 35). This name may be = 

* Great Spirit,' At all events, missi is = 'great ' (see a, n. 33). 

as the Father Alloiiez, who visited Lake Superior in 1666, writes : — 

Spirit m . .' . 

Gahrn? 0111 " ^ e sava g es respect this lake as a divinity, and offer sacrifices 
to it, because of its size, ... and also in consequence of its 
furnishing them with fish, upon which all the natives live, when 
hunting is scarce in these quarters." I apprehend it was rather 
the Spirit of the Lake, than the lake itself, that they feared and 
propitiated. 

The mean, fa As to the literal meaning of ' Matchi,' M. Kohl leaves us 

mg of his ° 7 

Matchi in the dark. In one of his compounds (p. 94) it seems to be, 
' clearly, = ' wicked,' in another (p. 147) to be, more clearly (if 
one can so speak), = ' great.' The latter sense, though it would 
give us no distinction between the Spirit of the Sky and the 
Spirit of the "Water, would seem to be that in which Mr. Long- 
fellow (H. xiv.) means us to take his "Mitche," in the intro- 
duction of Matchi Mahnitoo as 

" Mitche Manito the Mighty," 
after that of Keetchi Mahnitoo as 

" Gitche Manito the Mighty." 
It is true that he describes the latter as "the Master of Life," 
and the former as "the dreadful Spirit of Evil;" but he seems 
to intend "Mitche," as well as "Gitche," to be considered = 
" the Mighty," and we find ' Mitchi,' in this sense, in the com- 
pound Mitchi Gahming (= ' Great Waters ' : see pp. 117, 210, 
211). 
vhe B. The Bed Man has also his Dii Minores. Thus Mackinaw 

Little 

tool™' is said to be haunted by " Spirits" left on that island by " the 

Chief of Spirits" (see a. n. 72). 
lb ? ec l ir ate ®' " Nearly every Indian," says K. (p. 58), "has discovered 

a terrestrial object, in which he places special confidence, of 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 223 

which he more frequently thinks, and to which he sacrifices more 36. 
zealously, than to the Great Spirit. They call these things their 
' Manitou personnel? but the proper Ojibbeway word is said to 
be ' Nigouimes,' which means ' my hope.' One calls a tree, 
another a stone or rock, his ' NTigouimes.' " 

a. K. (p. 59) relates that an 'Indian' "once fancied he heard Trees 
a remarkable rustling in a tamarak" (a. n. 49), and thenceforward 
took " this tree as his protector." 

Spirits are ascribed to plants (K. p. 163), and the Spirit of and 
the Corn is the subject of a legend (p. 268). 

b. K. (p. 58) says : — " On the mainland, opposite La Pointe, Rocks 
there is an isolated boulder and huge erratic block, which the 

' voyageurs' call ' le rocker [de Otamigan']? or c la pose de Otam- 
igan. 1 The 'wyageurs' and 'Indians' have little stations or 
resting-places along their savage paths in the forests," which 
" they call ' des poses,' probably because they lay off, or posent, 
their burdens there for a short time. This ' rocker de Otami- 
gan' is in a swamp close to one of these 'poses.' # . . . When 
he" [Otamigan] "sat down at the resting-place, and regarded 
the rock opposite him, it seemed as if it were oscillating, then 
advanced to him, made a bow, and went back again to its old 
place. This phenomenon — which may be, perchance, explained 
by Otamigan' s excessive exertion and a transient giddiness — 
seemed to him so remarkable, that he straightway felt the 
greatest veneration for the rock, and ever after considered it his 
1 protecting God.' Now, I am told, he never goes past it without 
la}'ing some tobacco on the rock as a sacrifice, and often goes 
expressly to pay worship to it." 

Mr. West, a missionary, who in 1821 traversed the region be- and 
tweenthe Rocky Mountains andL. Superior, speaks of a "stand- 
ing stone," on which his ' Indians,' as they passed, " deposited 
bits of tobacco, small pieces of cloth, and other trifles, in supersti- 



stones- 



224 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

36. tious expectation that it would influence their Manitou to give 
them buffaloes and a good hunt" (Hi. v. i. p. 307). 
usual (3.) " The two most usual sacrifices," says K. (p. 60), " are a 

SACRI- 
FICES, dog and tobacco. . . . The bear is honoured, but does not 

serve as a sacrifice ; nor do they offer plants, corn, flowers, or 
things of that nature." He mentions an occasion in which a 
" heavy bale of goods " was hurled into a river, as a sacrifice to 
" the Great Spirit." 
The dog. A. "The dog," says K. (ib.), "is the great sacrifice. ' The 
dog is our domestic companion, our dearest and most useful 
animal,' an Indian said to me. 'It is almost like sacrificing 
ourselves. , " And, again, he says, (p. 38) :— " The dog is re- 
garded by them as unclean, and yet as, in some respects, holy. 
If a dog is unlucky enough to thrust his muzzle into a lodge or 
a temple where a religious rite is being performed, the* lodge is 
considered to be disturbed and profaned, and the animal pays 
for the intrusion with its life : and yet, on the other hand, they 
cannot offer their deities and spirits a finer sacrifice than a dog ; 
though it might be thought that the gods would prefer an inno- 
cent deer or lamb. An Indian, of whom I inquired the cause 
of this sanctity of the dog-sacrifice, answered me : — ' The dog 
was created in heaven itself, and sent down expressly for the 
Indians. It is so useful to us that, when we sacrifice it, this must 
be considered a grand sign of piety and devotion.' " 

The sacrifice of a dog is alluded to in K. p. 38, and in p. 268 
— in the course of a legend — the Spirit of the Corn is propiti- 
ated with this animal. I have already instanced an occasion on 
which " a dog was thrown into the lake as a sacrifice to appease 
the angry manitou of the waters." There are two in He. (P.'s 
authority). 

Tobacco. _.. 

B. "Tobacco they sacrifice and strew everywhere," says K. p. 
60 ; " on all stones, boulders, masses of copper, graves, or 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 225 

other places to which they attach a holy significance." Thus 36. 
an 'Indian' who removes a large copper-boulder, lays "fire 
pounds of tobacco" in its place (K. p. 64). So, again, we have 
found l le rocker de Otamigan'' and the " standing stone" propi- 
tiated by the sacrifice of tobacco. 



37. 

The Northern "Waters of Lake Superior, 

AND THE FIRST MaTL-BOAt's PASSAGE THROUGH THEM. 

(1.) The northern waters of Lake Superior. 
(2.) The first mail-boat's passage through them. 

(1.) The following passages are extracted from the narrative the 

V ' ° x NOBTH- 

of what may be termed Professor Agassiz's exploring expedi- J55 reBS 
tion : — " It is difficult to convey any notion of the vast number supe^ 

rjor;. 

of islets and rocks in this part of the lake" (C. p. 76). "We 
began again to thread our way through endless woody islands of 
greenstone, often showing vertical sides" (C. p. 78). "We 
encamped on one of an extensive group of islands. As we 
glided rapidly into the little cove where we were to encamp, the 
water shoaled so suddenly, that, looking down over the side of 
the canoe, we seemed to be rushing against the side of a moun- 
tain. These coves shoal rapidly, and have the bottom covered 
with huge rounded boulders, like a gigantic pavement " (C. 
p. 94). 

(2.) The 'trial-trip' of the Scrnee, — in July, 1858, — was this fibst 

MAIL. 

the commencement of anything like regular navigation of the 1:,,ATv 



MAIL. 
BOAT'S 

passage 

THROU 

' THEM. 

Saut Ste. Marie Canal in 18oo, the southern waters began to be 

frequented in summer by 'American' excursion -steamers of 

goodly bulk. But, to say nothing of the fact — an important 

Q 



226 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

37. one with ' Americans ' — that the northern part of the lake 
" does not enter into the line of their operations " (as Napoleon 
said of Jerusalem), ' Brother Jonathan ' eschews it, on account 
of its rocks and fogs. 

The character of the sunset of the 14th of July seemed to us 
to betoken a speedy storm, and so we told the ' captain/ He 
pooh-poohed the notion. However, the sou'-easter that had 
borne us on so well blew harder and harder. We passed a most 
uncomfortable night in the little rolling 'propeller.'* The 
violence of the gale drove ^ heavy sea on her beams, and x)ur 
goods and chattels were tossed about in the wildest confusion, 
while the rain made its way in upon our heads from above. 
About 4 a.m. I contrived to dress, though that operation might, 
in this case, be defined as the pursuit and assumption of clothes 
under difficulties. On getting out upon the lower deck, I 
found it no easy matter to stand, much less to pass along 
toward the other end of the vessel. This operation had to be 
accomplished by running, as best I could, from one to another of 
the iron supporters of the upper deck. 

*' 'Twas mist and rain, and storm and rain." 

I had to run the gauntlet of a cold, keen rain — next akin to 
sleet — that swept, obliquely, across the vessel, like a volley of 
small shot. The waves often dashed over the bulwarks. So 
thick was the fog that I could see but a yard or two beyond 
them. I afterwards heard that the storm and fog had come on 
about 2.30 a.m. We had then, I was told, passed a couple of 
islands called the Slate Isles (see V., f. n. a), and were within 
view of a group of islets called Les Petits Ecrits. We had been 
steering, it was added, KW. by W. J W., and the pilot, acting on 

* See VII., f. n. g. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 227 

his own judgment, then changed out course to a point further 37. 
north, on discovering which the captain restored it to its former 
direction. It needs but a glance at the map — especially at 
Bayfield's admiralty- chart — to show that even this direction 
was fraught with considerable risk. After * easing ' the little 
steamer, we finally ' stopped ' her at 8 a.m. Her head was 
then put in different directions, and at length she was let drift. 
It was, I believe, about 10 a.m. that I awoke the pilot, who had 
fallen asleep from sheer fatigue. I found him very despondent, — 
indeed, thinking' we might at any moment run on a rock. So, 
that we might be ready to get into a boat at once, I thought it 
best we should pack up our scattered goods and chattels. This 
we did. As -to our money, — I gave my wife the notes, keeping 
the silver myself, as I might have to take my chance of a second 
boatful being launched on the waves. Groing into the little 
cabin that served as saloon, I found it in the greatest disorder. 
On the table lay scattered the charts, besprinkled with brandy 
and water. On one of them flickered the lurid flame of an 
expiring candle. The floor was strewn with newspapers. The 
man, who filled the offices of cook and steward, was a pitiable 
object. He had been dreadfully sea-sick, though he had had, he 
said, eleven years of a nautical life. The pilot told me he 
believed we were in the centre of the broad channel between 
Isle Koyale and ' the north shore/ He proved to be mistaken. 
It was west of us, to the extent of some two or three degrees. At 
noon, the mate said he could distinctly hear breakers astern. 
Moths and flies came on deck, showing we were very near land. 
The breakers were now heard all round us, mingling their growl 
with the sound made by the oscillation of the helplessly-drifting 
vessel. The next hour and a quarter were passed in no little 
anxiety. The sun seemed to be hopelessly struggling with the 
fog. The ' captain ' thought the sky would not clear that day. 
Q2 



228 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

37. About 1.10 p.m. the fog parted, just enough to give us an almost 
momentary glimpse of a very lofty black conically-shaped, or 
rather cap-shaped, figure close by us and far above us in the grey 
sky. One of us thought it a mile off, another but half a mile. 
The pilot, on its appearance being described to him, said it must 
be " St. Ignace mountain" (see a. n. 38). On referring to Bay- 
field's chart, we found this height estimated as 1300 f. above the 
lake, while rocky islets were represented as sown broadcast along 
an iron-bound coast. The fog closed up again almost instan- 
taneously, and we despaired of its clearing off. The pilot told 
me there were rocks here below water as well as above. " Catch" 
said he, "an * American' taking the north shore." Minutes 
seemed hours. However, about 1.30 p.m. the fog began to dis- 
perse. By degrees there opened to our view a mountainous and 
iron-bound coast, showing a front of thickly-wooded cliff 
Before it lay a troop of rocky islets, whose shores rose perpendi- 
cularly from the water, and were, for the most part, topped with 
trees. The pilot said the land nearest us was Fluor (or Spar) 
Island. From Bayfield's chart it seemed to be either that island 
or the western part of St. Ignace. Behind the cliffs, a black cone 
soon showed above the grey fog. It was, to all appearance, 
that revealed to us previously. The pilot recognised it as " St. 
Ignace mountain." The fog had been dispersed by a vigorous 
west-wind. Leaving behind us the routed foe, we shaped our 
course for Fort William in the teeth of the gale. I need not 
say how much I relished a part of a beef-steak (though a very 
tough one), which I got at 3 p.m. After that long and anxious 
morning, it came to the palate flavoured with the very best of 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 229 



38. 



St. Ignace Island. 

C. (p. 78) speaks of " St. Ignace, high in front, black to the 
top with spruce-forests." Again (in p. 95) he says: — "We 
entered a straight, narrow, river-like channel, some 12 or 15 m. 
long, leading inside of Fluor Island and St. Ignace, whose dark 
wooded sides made a purple background to the vista." Again 
(in p. 99): — "We continued coasting along St. Ignace, here a 
continuous cliff of red sandstone occasionally showing through 
its covering of forest." He speaks of the island in greater 
detail in pp. 79, 98. He says the Agassiz party gave the name 
of Mount Cambridge* to the highest eminence (the "St. Ignace 
mountain" of our pilot), and that some of them scaled the 
thickly- wooded steep. Its height is estimated as 1300 f. above 
the water (Bay.). 



39. 

NlN]§XBOHZHOO 

(1.) The various shapes of this word. 

(2.) Four other words, which are said to denote the same imaginary being. 

A. The assertion of this by Mr. Longfellow, on the authority of 

Dr. Schoolcraft. 

B. Its correctness questioned, particularly in the cases of 

a. "Michabou" and 

b. " Chiabo." 

(3.) The various characters of this imaginary being. 
(4.) His not being the object of prayer or sacrifice. 
(5.) The more genuine-looking legends about him, 
A. As maker of the earth. 

a. The legend about a group of hills east of Black Bay. 

b. The legend about a rock near Cape Gargantua. 

* Cambridge, a small town near Boston, is the site of the Harvard Uni- 
versity, their ■ alma mater.' 

Q3 



230 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

39. B. As giant-vanquisher. 

a. His causing the death of the sturgeon. 

b. His origination of the caverns of Schkuee-archibi-kung. 

c. His vanquishing the West-Wind with the boulders of 

Keetchi-Gahmi Seebi. 

C. As originator of the arts of peace. 

a. His invention of the canoe. 

b. His discovery of maple-sugar. 

D. As originator of institutions and customs ; 

e. g. his institution of face-painting. 

various (1.) Dr. Schoolcraft writes the name Manabozho; M. Kohl 

SHAPES ... 

of the writes it Menaboju ; Messrs. Foster and Whitney, Menni-boujou ; 

Mr. Cabot, Nanaboujou. I took it down from our pilot's lips as 

Ninnibohshoor, but, on comparing notes with those writers, 

prefer so far altering the shape he gave it as to write Ninni- 

bohzhoo. 

four (2.) A. In the form " Manabozho," this name is mentioned 

words by Mr. Longfellow (first note to H.), or rather by Dr. School- 

ofthe ES cra ft> on whose writings Mr. Longfellow's poem is based. The 

bWg, Song of Hiawatha "is founded," says its author, "on a tradition, 

prevalent among the North- American Indians, of a personage of 

miraculous birth, who was sent among them to clear their 

rivers, forests, and fishing-grounds, and to teach them the 

arts of peace. He was known among different tribes by the 

several names of Michabou, Chiabo, Manabozho, Tarenyawagon, 

and Hiawatha. Mr. Schoolcraft gives an account of him in his 

Algic Researches, vol. i. p. 134; and in his History, condition, 

and prospects of the Indian tribes of the United States, part iii. 

p. 314, may be found the Iroquois form of the tradition." 

but, B. I question the correctness of viewing those words as 

I THINK, ii.li i '• i 

names of merely names by which the same imaginary being " was known 
beings. amon g different tribes." I would rather suppose that each name 

denotes an independent creation of the imagination of " different 

tribes." 
Mkhabau. a. As to "Michabou," — it is clearly but another mode of 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 23 1 

writing the word written " Michipous," and said to mean " the 39. 
chief of spirits," in a tradition about the Island of Mackinaw, 
which is related in Heriot's Travels in Canada, p. 185. [See 
a. n. 72. (1.)'.] 

b. As to " Chiabo," — may it not be an abbreviation of Chiaho. 
"Chibiabos?" This is the name of a character in H., who 
becomes 

" Ruler in the Land of Spirits." 

Mr. Longfellow does not even represent it as a compound 
word, though " Chibi" is, clearly, but another mode of writing 
the " Jeebi"* (= 'ghost,' 'soul of a dead person') of H. xvii., 
just as the "cheemaun" (= 'canoe') of H. vii. is, clearly, but 
another mode of writing the "jiman" (= ( canoe,' and, of course, 
pronounced 'jeeman') of K. (p. 34). 

(3.) Even if we do not view these five names as merely names various 

. . CHARAC- 

by which the same imaginary being " was known among dif- ters of 
ferent tribes," yet under that of " Manabozho," in its various B0HZH0 °- 
shapes, he appears in several different characters. He is at 
once the Demiurgus, the Hercules, the Prometheus, the Tri- 
ptolemus, and the Numa of the Red Man. However, in calling 
him " the mighty" (VI. 4), I have, I think, given him the epithet 
which, for one word, best expresses the Eed Man's idea of him. 

(4.) K. (p. 415) writes: — "As far as I have myself noticed he is 
or learned from others, the mighty Menaboju, the Indians' be not 

PRAYED 

favourite demigod, is never named in their religious ceremonies. gJcw- 
This is strange and almost inexplicable to me, for they ascribe 
to him the restoration of the world, the arrangement of paradise, 
and so much else.f Nor did I hear that they ever prayed to 

* See XI. iv. (2.), and XII. 8 ; and also a. n. 76. 

f I am surprised that neither here, nor in many other parts of this book, 
does M. Kohl observe that a large proportion of the stories told him of 
** Menaboju," are clearly inventions of the Christianized Indians, the hal'- 
breeds, and the Franco-Canadian ' voyageurs' 
Q4 



A. The following are cases in which he appears as maker of 
our world. 



232 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

39. Menaboju, or sacrificed* to him. And yet, all along Lake 

Superior, you cannot come to any strangely-formed rock or other 

remarkable production of nature, without immediately hearing 

some story of Menaboju connected with it." 

the (5.) I will now proceed to the mention of the more genuine- 

MOKE 

genuine- looking legends about him. 

LOOKING 
LEGENDS 
ABOUT 
HIM. 
As maker 

earth. a. While I was looking at the remarkable pair of heights 

A group 

eLtof* wn i cn were clearly those given in Bayfield's chart as "The 
iaj? Paps" (see VI. f. n. d), our pilot told me that the group, of 
which they form the more prominent members, is called by the 
4 Indians' ' Ninnibohshoor ; ' that this is the man who made the 
world ; and that, when he had finished making it, he lay down 
there. " I calculate," said he, " he laid his bones there." He 
added that the pair of more prominent heights among them 
are considered to be Mnnibohshoor's knees. The imaginative 
Bed Man might well be struck with the resemblance of the 
whole group to a recumbent man, and of the two greater 
eminences to his knees. 

Some little time after our tour and the composition of the 
record of this part of it, I found the narrator of the Agassiz 
excursion (C. p. 80) stating that the two greater eminences are 
"called ' Les mammelons' by the ' voyageursj but by the 'In- 
dians,' much more aptly, ' The Knees.' One could easily," he 
adds, " fancy the rest of the gigantic body lying at ease on the 
plateau, with the head to the north, and the knees drawn up, in 
quiet contemplation of the sky — perhaps Nanaboujou, or the 
First Man." 

Our pilot is the only authority I am acquainted with for this 

* I shall presently, however, cite Mr. Cabot, as speaking of their sacrificing 
tobacco at a rock, which is supposed to be a petrifaction of this being. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 233 

legend, by the narration of which its subject was first brought 39. 
to my knowledge. 

b. However, a similar legend is mentioned by Mr. Cabot, as a rock 

near Cape 

attaching to a rock near Cape Grargantua. " We stopped," says ^ gan ' 
he (C. p. 56), " at a curious rock, part of which seems as if cut 
away nearly to the level of the water, while the rest rises steeply 
to the height of 30 or 40 f. One of the common Indian legends 
about the deluge and the creation of the earth attaches to this 
rock, and the Indians still regard it with veneration. According 
to one of the men, "the Evil Spirit*," after making the world, 
changed himself and his two dogs f into stone at this place, and 
the Indians never pass without 'preaching a sermon' and leaving 
some tobacco" (a. n. 36). "Even our half-breeds, though they 
laughed very freely about it, yet, I believe, left some tobacco on 
the spot." 

B. He is the Eed Man's giant-vanquisher — his Hercules, his As giant 

van- 

1 Jack the Giant-killer. ' Q uisher - 

a. In this character he causes the death of the great sturgeon m s siay- 

ing the 

(see XI. f. n. p) — that big dark-looking fish, which the Eed sturgeon. 
Man, naturally enough, considers "the representative of the 
evil principle" (K. p. 325). According to legend, he was swal- 
lowed up, canoe and all (K. ib.), but " did not leave off singing 
even in the belly of the great fish-king" (K. p. 299). 

* " The gods of the aborigines, here as elsewhere, are to their Christianized 
descendants nothing but the Devil, the elder spirit of all mythologies" (C). 

t As far as the "two dogs" go (their master may be forgotten in this case), 
there is a parallel in a legend, which is said to attach to a height hence called 
Dog Portage (or, by way of distinction from another, Great Dog Portage). 
This height is about 18 m. N.W. of Thunder Bay, and is situate between 
Little Dog Lake and Great Dog Lake. " According to the traditions of the 
natives" (says Simp.), " the 'portage' derives its name from the circumstance 
that two enormous dogs, having taken a nap on the top of the hill, left the 
impress of their figures behind them ; and certain it is that such figures have 
been marked in the.turf in the same manner as the white horse near Bath" 
[ Westbury rather]. 



234 APPENDIX-NOTES 

39 This^legend forms a part of Mr. Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha, 
as Hiawatha's fishing. It is there told how Hiawatha, as the 
subject of the legend is called in this poem, went 

" Down into that darksome cavern," — 
how "he smote" 

" With his fist the heart of Nahma," — 

how his squirrel helped him to drag his canoe crosswise, 

" Lest from out the jaws of Nahma, 
In the turmoil and confusion, 
Forth he might be hurled and perish ; " — 

how, when the great fish had stranded on the pebbles, the sea- 
gulls 

" Toiled with beak and claws together," 
and at last freed him 

" From the body of the sturgeon." 
b. Again, in this character he is the originator of the caverns 

Hisori- & ' to 

?f n SJ° n of Schkuee-archibi-kung [a. n. 32. (1.)]. In the last scene of 
schkJIe?. The hunting of Pau-Puk-Keewis (H. xvii.), — when Hiawatha 

archibi- 

*un g . has, literally, run to earth that sprightly being, that Mercutio 
of Mr. Longfellow's poem, — "the Manito of Mountains" is re- 
presented as 

*' Bidding Pau-Puk-Keewis welcome 
To his gloomy lodge of sandstone ; " 

and then it is told how Hiawatha 

" With his mittens, Minjekahwun, 
Smote great caverns in the sandstone," 

and how, at his prayer, Waywassimo, the lightning, came with 
his war-club, and Annemeekee, the thunder, came with his 
shout, 

" And the crags fell, and beneath them 
Dead among the rocky ruins 
Lay the cunning Pau-Puk-Keewis.", 

Messrs. Foster and Whitney (see a. n. 32, p. 204) report that 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 235 

they were told by their 'voyageurs' many stories " of the pranks 39. 

of the Menniboujou in these caverns." 

c. And again, in this character he vanquishes the West- Wind His van- 
quishing 
with the boulders of Keetchi-G-ahmi Seebi [see a. n. 28 (p. 189 w e in ^ est 

and foot-note)]. Compare the legend mentioned in a. n. 26. (2.) B. 

C. He is originator of the arts of peace. as 

originator 

a. He invented the canoe. K. (p. 34) writes: — " They even of the arts 

vjr ' J of peace. 

point to some half-dozen lumps of stone on the shore of one of The 

canoe. 

these Apostle Islands, and say that Menaboju built his canoe 
between them, and hung it to dry upon them." 

b. K. (p. 415) writes: — "It was Menaboju who discovered Mapie 

sugar. 

that the maple-tree could produce sugar. He went one day into 
the forest, made an incision in a maple-tree, found the exuding 
sap to be sweet," and "made sugar of it." (Maple-sugar is the 
subject of a. n. 58. It is alluded to in VIII. 3.) 

D. K. (p. 415) writes: — "He is also the legislator of the as 

originator 

Indians, and the great model or ideal for all their ceremonies, J^Jj^Jf" 
customs, and habits of life. Nearly all their social institutions cus 
are referred to him." He is said to have instituted "the 
calumet-dance, the war-dance, the medicine-dance, and the other 
Indian dances and ceremonies "(K. p. 390). 

Thus, the custom of painting the face began with him. " I Face- 
painting 
asked an Indian," writes K. (p. 416), "why he and his country- 
men painted their faces so strangely, and he replied — 'Menaboju 
did it so. When he was once going to war, he took red earth, 
burnt it to make it still redder, and smeared his face with it 
that he might terrify the foe. Afterwards, on returning from 
the wars, he also took some of the yellow foani* that covers 

* Mr. Warburton was, clearly, ignorant of the nature of this, when he 
wrote of Lake Ontario that, " for a few days in June, a yellow unwholesome 
scum covers the surface at the edge every year" (War. vol. i. p. 116). 
Crossing that lake on the 26th and 28th of June, 1858, I noted it, as " like a 
yellow scum^on the water." 



236 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

39. the water in spring' (probably the yellow pollen that falls'from 
the pine), ' and made pleasant yellow stripes on his face.' And 
that was the reason why the Indians have since painted their 
faces." 

40. 

Isle Koyale. 

(1.) The names given it by the Red Man and the White Man. 

(2.) Its physical characteristics. 

(3.) The oldest account of it and its copper. 

names. (1.) Menong is said by the Jesuit missionaries of two cen- 

Menong. 

Royaie. Juries since (Da.) to have been the name given this island by 
the Ked Man. Isle Koyale is that which it has borne under 
French, British, and ' American ' sway. 

physical (2.) The following summary of its physical characteristics is 

CHABAO- 

™s- r a recasting of that in P. and W. (part i. p. 18). 

The island is divided lengthwise by numerous parallel ridges*, 
which are sloping on the southeastern side, but uniformly bare 
and precipitous on the northwestern. At the northeastern ex- 
tremity of the island, they extend, like fingers, affording safe 
and commodious harbours. This feature of the island is the 
result of its geological structure.f Bands of soft amygdaloid 
alternate with hard crystalline greenstone, and these two offer 
an unequal resistance to the action of the elements. At no 
remote epoch, powerful currents swept over the island in a 



* Their greatest height is, according to F. and W., " nowhere more than 
600 f." above Lake Superior. In Bayfield's chart they are stated to be 300 f. 
above the lake. In my map I have followed the latter estimate. 

f Bayfield's chart notes in the north of the island " very bold perpen- 
dicular cliffs of greenstone," in the southwest " shores of conglomerate or 
coarse sandstone," and in the southeast a " ridge of sienite," succeeded by 
sandstone and porphyry in the neighbouring islets. 



A>~D ITS 
COPPER. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 237 

southwesterly direction, grinding down the'softer beds, polishing 40. 
and grooving the harder to their very summits ; so that, not 
only does no tree take root upon them, but not even do the 
lichens find sustenance. The intervals between the ridges are 
occupied by small lakes, wet prairies, or cedar-swamps. The 
island everywhere presents a desolate appearance — what with 
its barren rocks, its dwarf cedars and birches, hung with droop- 
ing moss, its abrupt cliffs, and its impassable marshes. Among 
the few animals that roam over it are the carriboo, the lynx, 
and the otter ; the feathered tribe is represented by the hawk, 
the owl, and the pigeon. 

On the chlorastrolite see a. n. 41. 

(3.) The oldest account we have of it is that of the Jesuit oldest 

ACCOUNT 

missionaries (Da.). ofit 

v ' A\T) IT 

After mentioning " an island called Thunder Island" [pro 
bably, say F. and W., St. Ignace I.], " which is noted for its 
abundance of metal," Father Dablon writes : — 

" Further to the west is an island called Menong, celebrated 
for its copper. It is large (being 25 leagues long), and 7 leagues 
from the mainland. One bay at the northeast extremity is 
particularly remarkable. It is bounded by steep cliffs of clay, 
in which there may be seen several ' strata' (or beds) of red 
copper, separated from each other by layers of earth. In the 
water is seen copper sand, which may be gathered with spoons, 
although there are pieces as large as acorns. This large island 
is surrounded by several smaller ones, some of which are said 
to consist entirely of copper. One especially, near the north- 
east corner, is within gunshot of the main island. Further off 
in that direction is one called Manitou-minis *, on account of 

* ' Manitou-minis' is — ' Manitou (pronounced 'Mahnitoo ') Island.' Many 
islands in the Laurentian lakes have been so called by the Red Man. The 



238 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



40. the abundance of copper. It is said by those who have visited 
it, that, on a stone being thrown against it, a sound like that of 
brass when struck is heard." Probably this is that stated in 
Bayfield's chart to be 01 amygdaloid, and to contain native 
copper 



Charac- 
teris- 
tics. 
Hature, 

Structure. 

Colour, 

Lustre* 



LO- 
CALITY 
In the 
rock. 



41. 
The Chlorastrolite.* 

(1.) Its characteristics. 

A. Its nature. 

B. Its structure. 

C. Its colour. 

D. Its lustre.] 

E. Its size. 
(2.) Its locality. 

A. In the rock. 

B. As, a pebble. 
(3.) Its use. 
(4.) Its discovery. 
(5.) Its name. 

(1.) A. It is a hydrous silicate. 

B. Its structure is finely radiated, or stellate. 

C. Its colour is a light bluish green. 

D. It has a pearly lustre, and is slightly chatoyant on the 
rounded sides. 

E. The largest specimens which have been found in the 
rock are about an inch in diameter. 

(2.) A. It is found in the 'trap' at Chippewa Harbour, 
which is in the northeastern part of Isle Eoyale. 

name (see a. n. 36) generally indicates that in or near the island to which it 
is given, there is something which has been regarded by the Red Man with 
wonder, and consequently with superstitious dread, either, say, a mass of 
copper (see a. n. 36), or a deep hollow in the bed of the lake (see a. n. 20). 

* This note is, in the main, compiled from F. and W. (part ii. pp. 97, 98). 
So is also the notice of the chlorastrolite in Dana's System of Mineralogy, 
vol. ii. p. 315 (4th edit.). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 239 

B. It is chiefly found on the beach as a small water- worn 41. 
pebble*, and especially on the islets near the northeast end of ^biie. 
Isle Koyale. 

(3.) Cut and polished, it is a pretty article of jewelry. use. 

(4.) Messrs. F. and W. say that " this mineral was first ob- dis- 

v ' COVEEY. 

served by Dr. Locke on the shores of Isle Koyale." It seems, 
however, to have been known to the Jesuit missionaries (Da.). 
They mention " the occurrence of certain pebbles along the shore, 
which are somewhat soft and of an agreeable green colour." 

(5.) Its name, which was given it by Dr. C. T. Jackson, is name. 
formed from three Greek words, and means 'green starry 
stone.' 

42. 
Thunder Mountain. 

(1.) Its characteristics. 

(2.) The Red Man's superstition about it. 

(3.) Its mention in Mr. Longfellow's poem (H.). 

(1.) It is a jagged ridge of " greenstone" (Bay.), which bounds chaeao- 
and shelters Thunder Bayf on the east. The northern shore of T1CS * 
the bay is backed by a wooded range, that, at some little dis- 
tance from the margin, slopes down to the valley of Current 
Kiver, and thence trends away, as far as one can see, in a 
northeasterly direction. "With unbroken cliffs, extending 7 
m." (F. and W. parti, p. 19), and "resembling a vast colon- 
nade" (ib.), "Thunder Cape juts into the lake" (ib.), and pre- 

* I took away with me fifty of them. They formed part of a little store 
brought, for sale, in a small bottle by a party of Red Men, who came to us, 
in a large canoe laden with wood, while we were at anchor in Thunder Bay, 
on the morning of the 16th. It was intimated, through the interpreter, that 
the pebbles had been found on the beach of Isle Royale. By lubrication with 
oil, they had been given something of the lustre they have when freth from 
the waves of the lake. 

t S.eVl.f. n.k. 



240 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

42. sents on either side a "vertical wall of basalt-like columns" 
(C. p. 81). The summit can show but a poor growth of stunted 
trees, which seem to have a hard 'battle of life' to wage with 
the winds. We have since been reminded of them, on making 
a closer acquaintance with those on that lofty cliff between 
Clovelly and Hartland Point, which bears the romantic name of 
Gallantly Bower. The view we had of the Thunder-Mountain 
ridge from the west, while we steamed across Thunder Bay to- 
wards the northern mouth of the Kahministikwoya, reminded us 
of that of the Sieben Grebirge from the northwest. By Mr. Cabot 
(C. p. 81) it is called "a magnificent ridge," by Mr. Hind (E. 
E. p. 198) an "imposing* headland," while Sir G-. Simpson 
(Simp. p. 33) writes: — " The Thunder Mountain is one of the 
most appalling objects of the kind that I have ever seen, being 
a bleak rock of about 1200 f.f above the level of the lake, with 
a perpendicular face of its full height toward the west." 
the red (2.) Sir Gr. Simpson (ib.) adds : — 

MAN'S x / ■ £ ' 

th>n RSTI " "The Indians have a superstition, which one can hardly 
about it. re p ea £ without becoming giddy, — that any person, who may 

scale the eminence and turn thrice round on the brink of its 

fearful wall, will live for ever." 

This is the basis of my lines in VI. 7. 

mr. - (3.) In H. xvii. the thunder and the lightning are personified, 

Long- 
fellow's an $ represented as 

MENTION r 

Sweeping down the Big-Sea-Water 
From the distant Thunder Mountains. 

The passage has been already referred to in a. n. 39, (5), B., b. 

* So he writes (Hi. vol. i. p. 14) : — "The scenery of Thunder Bay is of the 
most imposing description." And so F. and W. (part i p. 19) write: — " No 
place in the northwest presents a view of greater magnificence than is 
afforded" by that of the heights in and around Thunder Bay. 

f He is considerably within the mark. According to Bayfield's accurate 
• chart, it is 1350 f. above the lake. 



APPENDIX-NOTES 24 1 

43. 
Pie Island. 

(1.) The cliff at its southeast end. 

(2.) The ridge between this cliff and Le Pate. 

(3.) Le Pate. 

A. A description of it. 

B. A parallel to it in Konigstein. 

(1.) The cliff at the S.E. end of Pie Island — an island so the 

SOUTH- 

named from the fine height on it called Le Pate — stands side by e ^st 
side with Thunder Mountain, at the entrance of Thunder Bay 
from the east (see VI. 8, 9). According to Bay., it rises 700 f. 
above the water. C. (p. 93) describes it as "presenting much 
the same appearance as Thunder Cape, viz. basaltic columns, 
across which may be traced the marks of a horizontal stratifi- 
cation. These columns in some places have fallen out, leaving 
hollows, like flues in the side of the cliff. In ot he r places single 
columns stand out alone, like chimneys ; in others, again, huge 
flat tables of rock have scaled off from the face of the wall, and 
stand parallel and a little separated from it. The metamor- . 
phosed strata in one place were unconformable, exhibiting a 
sudden fault." 

(2.) This cliff is succeeded by an uneven ridge, covered with the 

RIDGE. 

a thick growth of trees, whose various shades of colour are now 
and then relieved by the ' cropping out ' of the red rock. 

(3.) A. When the wavy ridge of the island has sunkLEPATE. 
abruptly to nearly the level of the water, it is succeeded by a 
tower of red greenstone, completely isolated, and, as far as one 
can see through its foliage, on every side perpendicular. Ac- Described. 
cording to Bay., it rises 850 f. above the water. It deserves a 
better name than Le Pate, that given it by the ' voyageurs? 

B. Konigstein, one of the few European fortresses that have La* 
R 



242 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

43. never been taken, much resembles Le Pate. Its height above 
T the Elbe is 779 f. Napoleon I. tried to take it by raising three 
guns to the top of Lilienstein, a similar height 3000 yards off; 
but the balls fell short. 

Since composing VI. 10, 1 have found F. and W. (part i. p. 19) 
comparing " Pie Island " — they must mean Le Pate — to " an 
immense castle." 

44. 

The Abundance, Variety, and Brilliance of 

the Lichens of Lake Superior. 

This feature in the scenery of Lake Superior, which we ob- 
served on making close acquaintance with its rocks at Thunder 
Bay (see VI. 11, especially the last line) and at Grand Portage 
Bay (the subject of X. 4), is, as I have found since the com- 
position of my mention of it, noted in the narrative of the 
Agassiz excursidA. 

Thus C. (p. 56) mentions a cliff near Cape Gargantua, "that 
showed a vertical face of at least 200 f. in height, dyed with an 
infinite variety of colour by the weather, and by the lichens, 
whose brilliancy was increased by the moist atmosphere. One 
orange-coloured lichen in particular was conspicuous in large 
patches. Here and there a tuft of birch aided, by the contrast 
of its bright green, the delicate gradation of tints on the grey 
rock" (C. p. 56). 

Again, near Otter Head, they found a " beach of large stones 
covered with lichens, whence the name of Campement du Pays 
de Mousse, which the cove bears" (C. p. 111). 

Again, north of Pic River, a " ridge was covered, in one 
place in an unbroken patch of an acre or more, with a checker- 
work of large tufts of yellowish-grey and dark-pinkish lichens" 
(C. p. 106). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 243 

45. 

HOHSHEYLAHGA. 

(1.) The name, properly, of the chief town of Canada under the Red Man. 
(2.) Its extension to the St. Lawrence, and to a region. 
(3.) Its being superseded by the word ' Canada.' 

(1.) Jacques Cartier, ascending the St. Lawrence in the au- origjn- 

ALLV THE 

tumn of 1535, found on the site of the city of Montreal a settle- g™, a 
ment of Ked Men, larger than that called Stadicona, which he ™- %■* 
found on the site of ' the lower town' of Quebec. It was sur- 
rounded by a circular palisade, and situated amidst cultivated 
fields of ' Indian corn.' He writes its name Hochelaga, a word, 
curiously enough, of German features that tally well with the 
site of Montreal on the slope of ' the mountain ' to which that 
city owes its name (a corruption of Mont Koyal). Perhaps we 
English had better write Hohsheylahga (as I do in VI. 14). 

(2.) The name, as that of the most important settlement of then 
the aborigines, was given by Cartier to the river now called St. |£ S ce W " 
Lawrence, a name he gave to the gulf only. It became that of region. 
the region in which it was situated, appearing as such in the 
letters patent by which Le Sieur de la Eoche was, in 1598, 
created by Henry IV., King of France, Governor- General of 
Canada, Hochelaga*; Terres Nueves, Labrador, and the river of 
the great bay of Norrembegue. 

* It is clear that, then, at all events, ' Canada ' and ' Hochelaga ' were the 
names of different regions. If I am blamed for ignoring this (in VI. 14), I 
may claim * poetic license,' and place myself under the wing of classic exam- 
ples. Indeed, those two words are treated as synonymous terms in a recent 
work, which has already passed through six editions, — viz. ' Hochelaga,' or 
* England in the New World,' by George Warburton ; edited by Eliot War- 
burton : 6th edition: Routledge, London, 1855. The following passages 
occur in it :— " We " [English] " were content to rest our western empire on 
the banks of the St. Lawrence, in the modern Canada,— the ancient Hoche- 
laga." (Editor's preface.) 

"The adventurers soon gathered that there was a town some days' sail 
R 2 



244 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



45. (3.) The word 'Hochelaga' was, in course of time, quite 
seded" by superseded by ' Canada,' * which, as the name of a region, seems 
to have been at first applied by the French explorers to that on 
the right bank of the St. Lawrence, at its termination in the 
huge oceanic bay called the Grulf of St. Lawrence (see a. n. 100). 
They afterwards tried to substitute ' La Nouvelle France ;' but 
this name, like others of their planting, did not take root. 

higher up ; this, and the countries round about, the natives called Hochelaga; 
thither they bent their way." (p. 20.) 

* Of three derivations of the word ' Canada ' given us by old writers, two, 
hardly worth mentioning, make it of Spanish origin, while the third, which 
. has of late found confirmation, traces it back to the Red Men coseval with the 
coming of the White Men to the New World. 

1. Father Hennepin (Hen.), the Franciscan, — followed by La Potherie (La 
Poth.), — says that ' Canada ' is a corruption of ' El capo di nada,' the name 
given the country (that is, of course, the°part on the Gulf of St. Lawrence) by 
the Spaniards, as a record of its having disappointed them. 

2. Another derivation from the Spanish is given by Charlevoix (Ch., tomei., 
p. 9) in the following passage: — " Cette baye" ["la Baye des Chaleurs "] 
" est la raeme, que Ton trouve marquee dans quelques cartes sous le nom de 
Baye des Espagnols ; et une ancienne tradition porte que les Castillans y 
etoient entres avant Cartier, et que n'yayant apercu aucune apparence de 
mines, ils avoient prononce plusieurs fois ces deux mots Acd Nada, ' ici rien ; ' 
que les sauvages avoient repetes depuis ce tems-la aux Francois, ce qui 
avoit fait croire a ceux-ci que Canada etoit le nom du pays. Nous avons 
deja vu que Vincent le Blanc a parle d'un voyage des Espagnols en ces 
quartiers-la ; le reste est fort incertain." 

3. The following derivation is mentioned by Charlevoix (in a foot-note to 
the foregoing passage) :— " Quelques-uns derivent ce nom du mot Iroquois 
Kannaia, qui se prononce 'Cannada'et signifie'un amas de cabannes.' " 
This derivation is confirmed by the fact that Brant, the Mohawk, or Iroquois, 
chief (undeservedly, as the author afterwards learnt and acknowledged, 
called *' the monster Brandt " in Campbell's Gertrude of Wyoming), in his 
translation of The Gospel according to St. Matthew into the tongue of his 
tribe, always uses ' Canada ' as equivalent to ' village.' The French dis- 
coverers, ignorant of the language of the aborigines, might well give, if not 
attribute, to the region a name which they found belonging to every collec- 
tion of human dwellings. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 245 



46. 

The Kahmixistikwoya Kotjte 
from Lake Superior to the Ked Kiver Settlement, 

AS FAR AS THE BORDER OF THE LaURENTIAN BASIX. 

(1.) General sketch. 

A. The Kahministikwoya. 

a. General description. 

b. Name. 

oj. Its meaning. 
/3. Its spelling, 
c Colour. 

d. Depth. 

e. Width. 
/. Speed. 
g. Banks. 

h. Indigenous vegetation. 
a,. Of the banks. 
/2. Of the valley in general. 

B. Little Dog Lake. 

C. Great Dog ' Portage: 

a. Description. 

b. The view from it. 

c. The Falls of Little Dog River. 

D. Great Dog Lake. 

E. Dog River. 

F. Prairie River. 

G. Coldwater Lake. 
H. Prairie Portage. 

I. Height-of-Land Lake, &c. 
(*2.) Geological characteristics. 

A. Below the Kah-kahbeka Falls. 

B. Above the Falls. 
(3.) Soil. 

A. At Fort William. 

B. At the Mission. 

C. On M'Kay's Mountain. 

D. On Dog Mountain. 
(4.) Exotic vegetation. 

A. At Fort William. 

B. At the Mission. 

C. On M'Kay's Mountain. 



r 3 



246 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



46. (1.) A. a. The river Kahministikwoya * is the first link in 
sketch, the route.f Its name is confined by the Eed Man to the stream, 
minhtV' that flows out of Little Dog Lake, and enters Thunder Bay Tsee 

kwoya. . 

General VI. f. n. k] by three channels which enclose a delta. 

descrip- 
tion. 

* It has been proposed to avoid the windings, shoals, rapids, and falls of 
the Kahministikwoya by the construction of. a road to Great Dog Lake from 
Thunder Bay, or from Pointe des Meurons, which is 10 m. up the river and is 
the limit of navigable water. The ' Indians ' have at present a winter-route 
up the valley of Current River (see p. 250, f. n.). The length of the route 
from Thunder Bay to Great Dog Lake would thus be but 25 m. instead of 
551 m. 

It is proposed to follow this up by the construction of a dam, 16 f. high, 
across the outlet of Great Dog Lake, which would be thereby extended to 
the foot of the 'portage,' on which Height-of-Land Lake lies [R. R. (Mr. 
Dawson), pp. 32, 98, 101, (Mr. Hind) 213]. 

Another plan is the construction of a road from Pointe des Meurons to one 
or other of the lakes near the Height-of-Land Lake of the Pigeon River 
route [a. n. 64]. 

It seems that one may perhaps somewhat shorten the route, and avoid 
several 'portages,' without artificial aid, by either (1.) leaving the Kahminis- 
tikwoya a little below Little Dog Lake, and ascending a tributary, which is 
said by the * Indians ' to be connected with L. Mille Lacs, and to be " quite 
passable in a small " canoe (R. R. p. 19), or (2.) ascending another feeder of 
Great Dog Lake, which also is said to communicate directly with L. Mille 
Lacs (p. 210). 

f It may be well to here state briefly the routes from Lake Superior to the 
Red River settlement, the link, in the chain of British colonies, between 
Canada and British Columbia. 

A. The Neepigon route (an ' Indian ' route not much travelled or known).— 
Neepigon River is the first link. From Lake Neepigon [see a. n. 69] the 
route parts into two, one (a.) uniting with route B. in the Lac des Mille Lacs, 
the other (6.) going to Lac Seul, and thenceforward either (a.) by Rainy 
Lake or (/3.), more directly, by a tributary of Winnipeg River, called English 
River. 

B. The Kahministikwoya route f_a.n. 46]. 

C. The Pigeon River route [a. n. 64]. 

D. The Superior City, Crow Wing, and Pembina route.— This seems likely 
to be the first route brought into common use, lying, as it does, on the main 
course of European immigration and American enterprise. Crow Wing 
(Minnesota), a town on the navigable part of the Missi-sippi [see a. n. 26, (1.)] 
(which is navigable above a point scarce 45 m. from Fond du Lac), is about 
120 m. W.S.W. of Superior City, while Pembina (just within Dacota, and on 
the international boundary) is 358 m. N.N. W. of Crow Wing, and 70 m. S. of 
Fort Garry (Red River). [See R. R. (Mr. Hind), pp. 191-2, 383-391.] 



APPEXDIX-XOTES. 247 

b. a. The name is appropriate, being = ' the river that runs 46. 
far about ' (Rich.). it* me ' 

meaning. 

£. Like other words belonging to the Eed Man's languages, it ] ts eUin<T 
is variously spelt, or rather, variously 'murdered,' by Europeans. 
In writing ' Kahministikwoya,' I follow Eich. (the oldest 
authority), save that, as in other cases, I insert the letter ' h.' 

c. The "rich umber" colour of this river, as well as of " all colour, 
the rivers" they "met with on the lake" (between Saut Ste. 
Marie and Thunder Bay inclusively), is noted by the chronicler 

of Professor Agassiz's expedition (C. pp. 51, 55, 59, 66, 71, 86). 
In the case of Montreal Eiver (a stream falling in between 
Maniainse Point and Cape G-argantua), it was "attributed to the 
presence of pitch, an explanation the Professor thought likely to 
be correct" (p. 51). In the case of Pic Eiver [see a. n. 69], the 
proximity of "pitch-pine woods" is incidentally mentioned 
(p. 71).* Notwithstanding this colour, the Pic Eiver alone was 
"turbid" (ib.\ the Kahministikwoya being reported as "toler- 
ably clear" (p. 81), while Montreal Eiver and " Michipicotin 
Eiver" [see a. n. 35, (2.)] were "clear" (pp. 51, 59). 

d. To a distance of 12 m. from the northern, being the main D>pth. 
one, of its three mouths, the average depth is 6 f.f The re- 
maining 31 m. are almost entirely occupied by rapids and 

* A month afterwards we found the same colour in the Ottawa and the 
Saguenay [on the locality of the latter river see a. n. 100 ; on the meaning of 
its name see pp. 211 (f. n.), 184], Without by any means denying that it may 
be " attributed to the presence of pitch," proceeding from the pitch-pines of 
the country drained, I would not have overlooked the bogs from which the 
rivers descend. In the case of the Saguenay, the colour is much deepened 
by the stupendous depth of the stream, and the shade of the lofty heights on 
either side of it. 

t There is from 20 to 30 f. outside the delta (Bay.), and from 12 to 14 f. 
within 1000 yards of the northern channel ; but M the bar has a variable depth 
of 3| to 5± f. water upon it " (R. R. p. 199). On the depth of Thunder Bay, 
see VI. f. n. k (p. 48). 

B 4 



248 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

46. cataracts, the chief of the latter being the Kah-kahbeka Falls 
[a. n. 60]. When these impediments occur, the canoe is either 
poled up, or towed up, or carried along the bank (the path being 
called a 'portage'), as the case admits. 

width. e. The width of the river is at first 400 f., but is much less on 

getting into the rapids. 

speed. f. The current is at first sluggish, but begins to be rapid 

about 10 m. up. 

Banks. g. The banks are at first low and flat, but gradually increase 

in height. Opposite M'Kay's Mountain [a. n. 59] they are 
about 15 f. high, and at length they are "nearly 60 f., often 
however retiring from the present bed of the river, and giving 
place to an alluvial terrace, some 8 or 10 f. in altitude" (R. R, 
p. 203). They are in some places "broken away, showing 
horizontal layers of yellow sandy loam, occasionally interrupted 
by sand and by narrow beds of clay " (C. p. 84). C. also noted 
that " the crumbling banks of loam and sand furnished abodes 
to large numbers of sandmartins and kingfishers " (p. 88). 

indigen- ft. a. Willows appear on the shores of Thunder Bay at the 

ous vege- 

tationof mouth of the Kahministikwoya, and on the half-raised islets 

the banks J ' 

that are the forerunners of its fast-growing delta. But tamaraks 
[see VI. 14, VII. 6, and a. n. 49] and aspens [see VII. 6, 
VIII. 3] are the most prominent trees there. They are suc- 
ceeded by spruces [see VIII. 3] and elms (C. p. 84). " Large 
quantities of white pine are to be seen occasionally" (R. R. 
p., 108). The chronicler of the Agassiz expedition noted that 
"the banks" were "swampy, densely wooded, and lined with 
water-plants, among others, the elegant heads of the sagittaria, 
also nuphar" (the yellow water-lily) [see VIII. 1], "equise- 
tum, bullrushes, &c* Such was the luxuriance of the vegeta- 

* I regret that I am not enough of a botanist to be able to complete this list. 



APPENDIX-XOTES. 249 

tion* that it reminded one of a swamp in the tropics, rather than 46. 
of a northern river" (C. p. 81). " The better quality of the soil 
was abundantly manifest in the size of the forest-trees " (p. 88), 
which were "larger than any" they '-'had seen on the lake" 
(p. 84). To conclude, — in speaking as I do (in VIII.) of its 
scenery, I am borne out by the following passages in the records 
of others: — " ... in the course of its windings, it presents 
such a variety of beautiful scenes of overshadowing forest, that 
we did not grudge the delay" (C. p. 87) — " ... the beautiful 
river, whose verdant banks formed a striking and agreeable con- 
trast with the sterile and rugged coast of Lake Superior" 
(Simp.) — " Compared with the adamantine deserts of Lake 
Superior, the" Kahministikwoya "presented a perfect paradise" 
(lb.). [See also C. b ; and (4.), C, f n.] 

£. The following is 3Ir. Hind's account of " the vegetation of and of the 

& & valley in 

the valley :"— " The low table-land is thinly wooded with small e eneraL 
pine,t and the soil is poor and dry; the alluvial valley sustains 
elm, aspen, balsam, poplar, ash, butter-nut, and a very luxuriant 
profusion of grasses, vetches, and climbing-plants; among 
which the wild hop, honeysuckle, and convolvulus, are the 

I can only say that just above Fort William the left bank of the river was 
lined with wild roses [see IX. 8] and a pink-flowered shrub which we after- 
wards found growing at Fort Holmes, Mackinaw [see a. n. 72], This was the 
character of the bank between the cultivated ground and the river. When we 
got into the forest, I observed, besides C.'s list, the iris [see VIII. 2 (end), 
and a. n. 51], the wild columbine {Aquilegia Canadensis) [see IX. 8], a flower 
like the ( Michaelmas daisy,' and a plant resembling the columbine in general 
appearance and the clematis in flower. All these were flowering on the 
southern shores of the Georgian Bay [see II. f. n. b] five days previously (on 
the 11th of July). 

* •■ The luxuriance of the vegetation " is spoken of by Mr. Dawson in R. R. 
p. 107; and so Mr. Hind states that the "alluvial terrace," which "often" 
occurs above the part opposite to M'Kay's Mountain, is " clothed with the 
richest profusion of grasses and twining flowering plants" (p. 203). 

t " Extensive areas covered with burnt forest-trees consisting chiefly of 
pine occur in the valley " (p. 206). 



250 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

46. most conspicuous. The rear portion of the valley, with an 
admixture of the trees just named, contains birch,* balsam, 
white [see a. n. 13] and black spruce, and some heavy aspens. 
The underbrush embraces hazelnut, cherries of two varieties, 
k"f(E.E.p. 204.) 

Littu Bog B. Little Dog Lake, the source of the Eed Man's Kahminis- 
tikwoya, is about 3 m. long and lj m. wide. Its shores are 
high and rocky. 

It is so named by way of distinction from Great Dog Lake 
(or Dog Lake par excellence). 

Great nog C. a. Great Dog 'Portage 1 (or Dog \ 'Portage' par ex- 
cellence) is the link between Little Dog Lake and Great 

Descrip, D g Lake. It is a path about If m. long, which passes 
along the side of a ridge, the summit of which, a little 
above it, is 500 f. above Little Dog Lake, and 710 f. above 
Lake Superior. The ridge is clothed with line timber, the 
aspens, in particular, being much larger than in the valley 
below. 

The vjew b. There is a fine view from * this 'portage ' (Bal. p. 248 ; 
Simp. ib. ; E. E. (Mr. Hind), p. 206). The following is the chief 
part of Mr. Hind's description of it: — "Little Dog Lake lies 

* " The canoe-birch " [a. n. 27] " was frequently seen 18 inches in diameter" 
(p. 205). 

f Under the head " &c." he probably includes " red and black currants, 
raspberries " [a. n. 23], *' strawberries, and gooseberries," with which, he says, 
the valley of Current River " abounds," while " forests of canoe-birch, balsam, 
white and black spruce, tamarak and cedar, with mountain-ash and other 
small trees, fringe its rocky banks and occupy its shallow valley "(pp. 195, 
196;. 

It may be well to add here that Current River, in the last half-mile of its 
course, consists of a series of rapids and cascades, and that it abounds in 
'speckled trout ' of very great size (ib.), as was practically proved by two of 
our party. 

X The origin of this name, which is extended to two ' portages" and lakes, 
is mentioned in a foot-note to p. 233. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 25 1 

at our feet: an unbroken forest of pines, dotted with groves 46. 
of aspen and birch, and, in the swamp-portions, with tamarak, 
stretches in all directions." 

The following is Sir G-. Simpson's : — " At the spectator's feet 
is stretched a panorama of hill and dale, checkered with the 
various tints^of the pine, the aspen, the ash, and the oak, while 
through the middle there meanders the silvery stream of the" 
Kahministikwoya, "often doubling and turning, as if willing 
to linger for ever in so lovely a spot." 

In Bal. (ib.) there is a pretty vignette of the prospect here at 
sunrise, as one comes from the west. 

c. A little west of the 'portage' is Little Dog Eiver (between The fails 
4 and 5 m. long), the natural link between Great Dog Lake and ^g^^ 1- - 
Little Dog Lake. The former is about 348 f. above the latter, 
and the descent is effected " by the foaming torrent in six 
successive leaps" (Hi. vol. i. p. 42). Mr. Hind (ib.) gives a 
chromoxylographic view of them, and says : — "In picturesque 
beauty they surpass" the Kah-kahbeka Falls. " They have not 
the grandeur of the Silver Falls on the "Winnipeg" [about 540 
m. farther on N.W.], "nor do they approach Niagara" [see 
XIV. 4, and a. n. 85] "in magnificence or sublimity, but their 
extraordinary height, and the broken surface they present, 
impart to them singular and beautiful peculiarities." 

D. Great Dog Lake (or Dog Lake par excellence, being so Great Dog 

Lake. 

called after Dog 'Portage') is about 25 m. long and 10 m. wide, 
while its * traverse ' occupies 8 m. of the canoe-route. It is very 
deep, a depth of 90 f. having been found only § m. from land. 
It is " bounded by bold primary rocks, and studded with innu- 
merable islands" (R. E. p. 209 ; after Murr.). The surrounding 
country is hilly, and covered with forests of white spruce, inter- 
spersed with groves of aspens, and, here and there, dotted with 



252 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

46. white (or Weymouth) pines, and red (or Banksean) pines [see 
a. n. 13] ; while white and yellow birch are abundant, and 
some of them are large. {lb.) 
Dog mver. E u Dog Eiver, as the chief feeder of Dog Lake is, after 
* Indian' custom, called, is ascended by the canoe-route to a 
distance of 33 m. from its mouth. It is in ordinary seasons but 

2 or 3 f . deep, and 80 f. wide. It winds sluggishly through a 
swampy country, timbered with poplar, pitch-pine, and tamarak. 
Its banks are fringed with alders, willows, and dogwood. 
'Portages' are occasioned by a fall of 3^ f. about 30 m. up, and 
one of 8| f. some 2| m. above. The stream is 40 f. wide, where 
it receives from the west a brook called Prairie Eiver. Above 
this point it widens out into a long narrow lake for about 2 or 

3 m i( " followed by a chain of twelve ponds, connected by short 
rapid streams, and comprised within 10 or 12 m. The upper- 
most pond apparently ends in a great marsh, which is believed 
to extend along the border of the Laurentian basin [see I.]. 
(Murr., quoted in E. E. p. 214.) 

prairie j\ Prairie Eiver is about 10 f. wide and 2 f. deep* It is 
thickly fringed with rushes, and overhung with willows. At its 
head are three ponds, which are, altogether, scarce 1 m. long. 

coMwater Gr. Coldwater Lake, as the farthest of the three has been 

Lake. ' 

named on account of its temperature, * " has usually been re- 
garded as the source of the St. Lawrence" (E. E. (Mr. Dawson), 
p. 98). The estimates of its elevation above Lake Superior, 
which are given by Messrs. Dawson, Hind, and Napier, range 
from 722 f. to 730 f. (E. E. pp. 123, 255, 91). It is about 50 f. 
above it that "the large spring, which feeds it, gushes out of 



* At 12.30 p.m., 10th August, 1857, it was 41°;5'. At 1 p.m., that of its 
feeding spring, about 50 f. higher, was 39° 5', being that found in Lake 
Superior, 50 m. from land, at noon, July 30. (R. R. pp. 215, 217.) 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 253 

the rocky side of the barrier" (E. E, p. 215), which, rising 46. 
some 170 f. higher, separates the basins of Lake Superior and 
Lake Winnipeg. 

H. Prairie ' Portage? as the next link^in the route is called, Proir«r 
attains a height of probably 190 f. above Lake Superior, while 
the summit of the ridge is 220 f. It sustains some good-sized 
spruces and red pines, to say nothing of a profusion of 
hazel-nuts, raspberries, blueberries, gooseberries, strawberries, 
Labrador tea {ledum palustre), and the fragrant 'Indian' tea- 
plant (ledum talifolmm). 

I. This last abounded on the mossy borders of a piece of might- of- 

Land 

water, called, from its situation, Height-of-Land Lake. It is Lak€ > $* 

about 2| m. beyond Coldwater Lake, and is 880 f. above Lake 

Superior, or 1485 f. above the ocean. Mr. Hind's party (E. E. 

p. 218) found it, where crossed by the route " about J m. broad; 

but its length from N.W. to S.E. could not be determined, on 

account of the vast expanse of rushes, with islands of tamarak, 

which seemed to blend it with an extensive marsh stretching 

far in both directions." From "a slight depression," visible 

" from near the summit of a pine-tree," in a dead level broken 

only by " the slight difference in the height of the tamaraks 

and spruces," "it seemed probable that" these waters drained 

into Dog Eiver. Again, "the i Indians' say that there exists a 

connection between Height-of-Land Lake and Savanne Lake."* 

This is a "reedy expanse" about 1 m. broad. It is § m. beyond 

Coldwater Lake, and some 15 f. lower. A small stream, that 

feeds Savanne Eiver, issues from it, and, when its water is 

high, is deep enough to enable the canoes to float down into 

Lac des Mille Lacs, and avoid Savanne Portage, a mossy 

* " Here, for the first time, the beautiful ' Indian cup ' or ' pitcher-plant ' 
(Saracenia purpurea) was seen in great profusion " (ib.). An infusion of 
its root is said to be a remedy for smallpox. 



254 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

45 # tamarak-swamp. Thus it would seem that Height-of-Land 

Lake sends its waters through Lake Winnipeg to Hudson's 

Bay, as well as through the Laurentian Lakes to the Gulf of 

St. Lawrence.* 

geologi- (2.) The geological character of the region below the Kah- 

chaeao kahbeka Falls differs from that of the region above them. (E. K. 

TERIS- ° ^ 

Below the P« 205.) 

kdhbeTca A. Below, the 'rock' consists of black argillaceous slates 

Falls. ' to 

(Huronian). The first exposure of them occurs 15 m. up the 
Kahministikwoya ; a large one is seen about 7 J m. higher up ; 
while at the Falls they appear " in magnificent mural pre- 
cipices " (p. 286). 
a b<we the B. This formation is succeeded by the gneiss on which it 

Falls. J & 

rests at a rapid J m. above the Kah-kahbeka Falls (which are 
about 30 m. up the river). Henceforward (indeed to the end 
of the route), the ' rock' is Laurentian, " including granite, 
syenite, gneiss, and the lower slates (micaceous and chloritic 
schists) " (ib.). 
soil.- (3.) A. At Fort William "the soil is a light sandy loam, 

At Fort 

wiuiam. reposing on yellowish clay." (K. E. p. 199.) 

At the B. About 3 m. up (at the Mission [a. n. 57]), " a light reddish 

Mission. 

loam . . . reposes to the depth of 6 f. upon a bluish-grey clay " 
(p. 200). 

* Mr. Hind (ib.), referring for fuller information to Dr. Norwood's Report 
in Dr. D. D. Owen's Geological Survey of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, 
mentions two similar interlockages, which connect the upper part of the 
Missi-sippi with Lake Superior, and one such connection of it with Hudson's 
Bay. I may add, that the water-shed common to the Laurentian and Missi- 
sippian waters is, in some parts, no more than 10 or 20 f. above the average 
levels of Lakes Superior and Michigan. It is said (D. p. 131) that the latter, 
when it is high and a strong north-west wind is blowing, discharges some of 
its surplus waters into Illinois River, a feeder of the Missi-sippi. Again, 
there is but a short 'portage' between a bend of Wisconsin River (a tributary 
of the Missi-sippi) and a chain of waters that feed Green Bay (Lake 
Michigan). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 255 



C. " The rock-formations, which comprise the country be- 46. 
tween the " Kahministikwoya " and Pigeon Eiver, indicate the 3? Kay's 

Mountain, 

presence of a fertile soil on the flank of the irregular table-land, 
the trap, with which the slates are associated, giving rise upon 
disintegration to a soil of superior character* (ib.). 

D. Mr. Hind " found that much of the soil on the flanks of the on Dog 

Mountain, 

Great Dog Mountain was far superior to the average quality in 
the valley of the" Kahministikwoya: "it consisted of a clay 
loam, with a gravelly sub-soil, containing numerous pebbles and 
water- worn fragments of rock" (p. 207). 

(4.) A. With regard to exotic vegetation, on that at Fort exotic 

VEGETA- 

William in particular, I have already [in VII. f. n. b] given ™£- 
some short extracts from a letter, which first appeared in The w%lham ' 
Oshawa Vindicator, being dated " Camp-ground on the Kamin- 
stigua [sz'c], near Fort "William, May 16, 1859," and signed 
"John Jessop." I may add that he states that in the year 
1858 "the maple-barley averaged about 60 bushels per acre, 
and something over 60 lbs. per bushel in weight. The yield of 
oats was equally large, although not so good in quality, owing 
to the inferiority of the seed sown." He says that wheat would 
be raised, were there but a mill. Mr. Hind (E. E. p. 202) says 
that "oats do not always ripen" here; "the cold air from the 
lake, — whose surface, 50 m. from land, showed a temperature of 
39° 5' on the close of the hottest month, — is sufficient to 
'prevent many kinds of vegetables from acquiring maturity, f 
which succeed admirably 4 or 5 m. up the river." 

B. However, "all kinds of small grain succeed well at the At the 

Misd:>n. 

Mission," and would be cultivated, were there but a mill (ib.). 



* This is shown, as Canadians know, by the fact that it produces "a heavy 
growth of hardwood-timber (maple, &c.)." (Ib.) 
t See also Hi. vol. i. chap. 1. 



256 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

46. But " Indian corn will not succeed" eyen there, "early and late 

frosts cutting it off. Frost occurs here, under the influence of 

the cold expanse of Lake Superior, until the end of June, and. 

begins again towards the end of August" (ib.). 

o™ C. "A few miles farther up the river, west of M'Kay's 

M'Kay's r ' J 

Mountain. Mountain, the late and early frosts are of rare occurrence ; and 
it was stated that Indian corn would ripen on the flanks of 
M'Kay's Mountain*" (ib:)-. 



* See (3.) C. f. n. Unfortunately for its prospect of being soon turned to 
agricultural use, the best land on the Kahministikwoya has been solemnly 
made over to the Red Man, an ' Indian Reserve' beginning just above the 
Mission and occupying about 25 square miles on the right bank of the river 
(R. R. p. 200, and f. n.). Till but recently, at least, the Mission has been the 
limit of cultivation in this region. " Half a mile above the Mission " (see a. n. 
57), Mr. Hind (Hi. vol. i. chap. 1) "noticed" (on August 1, 1857) "a very 
neat house in a clearing of about 10 acres in extent,— the last effort of civili- 
zation to be seen, with the exception of the Hudson's Bay Company [sic], for 
many hundred miles." The Canadian Government has recently laid out two 
townships on the left bank of the river. The valley contains at least 20,000 
acres of cultivable land, exclusively of the flanks of M'Kay's Mountain 
(R. R. p. 205). 

The following (part of which should have been placed at the end of (1.) A. 
h. a..) is from Simp. " The river . . . passed through forests of elm, oak, pine, 
birch, &c, being studded with isles not less fertile and lovely than its banks ; 
and many a spot reminded us of the rich and quiet scenery of England. The 
paths of the numerous ' portages ' were spangled with violets " (IX. 8 ; a.n. 63), 
*' roses " (IX. 8 ; p. 249, f. n.), " and many other wild flowers " (ib.), " while " 
(see p. 250, f. n.) " the currant, the gooseberry, the raspberry, the cherry, and 
even the vine " (a. n. 92) " were abundant. All this bounty of Nature was 
imbued, as it were, with life, by the cheerful notes of a variety of birds, and 
by the restless flutter of butterflies of the brightest hues' (VIII. 1, p. 69). . . . 
" One cannot pass through this fair valley without feeling that it is destined 
. . . to become the happy home of civilized men . . . At the time of 
our visit" [1841], " the hopeless wilderness to the eastward . . . seemed to 
bar for ever the march of settlement and cultivation. But that very wilder- 
ness, now that it is to yield up its long-hidden stores, bids fair to remove the 
very impediments which hitherto it has itself presented. The mines of Lake 
Superior, besides establishing a continuity of route between the east and the 
west, will find their nearest and cheapest supply of agricultural produce in 
the valley of the" Kahministikwoya. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 257 

47. 
The Companies and Fort William.* 

(I.) The Companies. 

A. History of the Hudson's Bay Company, 
down to its union with the North-West Company. 

B. The North-West Company. 

a. General sketch. 

b. Its route. 

c. Its posts on Lake Superior. 

d. Its works. 
«. Tillage. 
/S. Road-making. 

e. Its profits. 
/. Its relations to the Hudson's Bay Company. 

C. The internal economy of the Hudson's Bay Company. 

a. The grades in its service. 

b. Its local arrangements. 
cc. The ' departments.' 
/S. The 'districts.* 
y. The ' forts ' or ' houses.' 

(2.) Fort William. 

A. Its site. 

B. Its past grandeur. 

C. Its decay. 

D. Its present importance. 

a. Its position. 

b. Its fish, 
a. Lake-trout. 
(B. Whitefish. 

c. Its canoes. 

E. The origin of its employes. 

F. The live stock on its farm.+ 

(1.) A. The Hudson's Bay J Company was got up by Prince the cot- 
Rupert in 1669. In 1670 it was incorporated, obtaining from History of 
Charles II. a charter that granted it the sole right of trading in *cf*dw% 
the territories "within the entrance of" Hudson's Strait + union with 

(he Nertk- 
West Co. 
* This note illustrates VI. (12—14.) and VII. 
t On the dead stock and the soil, see a. n. 46, (4.), A., and (3.), A. 
I This bay [see a. n. 35, (2.)] and the strait which connects it with the broad 
Atlantic are so named after Henry Hudson, who discovered them in 1610. 
S 



258 APPENDIX-NOTES, 

47. Between 1670 and 1690 its profits were so great, that, notwith- 
standing the loss of £118,014 by the capture of some of its 
establishments by the French, the proprietors got, in 1684 and 
1688, payments of 50 per cent., and, in 1689, one of 25 percent. 
"In 1690 the stock was trebled without any call being made, 
besides affording a payment to the proprietors of 25 per cent, 
on the increased or newly-created stock. From 1692 to 1697 
the Company incurred loss and damage, to the amount of 
£97,500, from the French. In 1720 their circumstances were 
so far improved that they again trebled their capital stock, with 
only a call of 11 per cent, from the proprietors, on which they 
paid dividends averaging 9 per cent, for many years, showing 
profits, on the originally-subscribed capital-stock actually paid 
up, of between 60 and 70 per cent, per ann. from the year 
1690 to 1800." (Hi. vol. i. p. 206.) But the North-West 
Company, which was started in 1783, proved such a formidable 
rival, that in 1800—1807 and 1814—1821 the dividends of the 
older company were but 4 per cent., while in 1808 — 1813 there 
were none. (ZZ>.) 

B. a. The North-West Company was got up in 1783 by 

\h- 

' Co - some Canadian * merchants, having its head-quarters at Mon- 
treal. It was a most energetic body, and its energy was crowned 

jrai with success, It employed 500 * voyageurs ' and, probably, at 
least 2,000 hunters and traders. In 1821 it was united with 
the Hudson's Bay Company, merging its name in that of the 
older body. 

tes. b. When the goods arrived at Montreal in the spring, the 

* During the summer of 1856 there appeared in the Toronto Globe two 
letters signed •• Huron," which called the attention of the Canadians, the 
one to the enterprise of their countrymen as members of the North-West 
Company, the other to the vagueness and the questionable validity of the 
charter of the Hudson's Bay Company. They are given in D., pp. 84-91. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 259 

canoes laden with them went up the Kiver Ottawa, reached the 47. 
Georgian Bay via Lake Neepising, passed up the North Channel 
and St. Mary's Kiver, coasted the northern shore of Lake Supe- 
rior, reached Eainy Lake either by the Kahministikwoya route 
(a. n. 46) or by the Pigeon Kiver route (a. n. 64), and, from 
Rainy Lake proceeding to the Lake of the Woods and Lake 
Winnipeg, journeyed on to the great valleys of the Ked Kiver, * 
the Saskatchewan, and the Mackenzie. 

Upon the amalgamation of the Companies, the Hudson's Bay 
route alone was used for the carriage of goods from and to 
England, and the '"portages ' of the North- West Company's 
route got out of repair. 

c. On Lake Superior, it had important posts at La Pointe,f Posts on 

Lake 

Grand Portage [see a. n. 64], and Fort William (Hi. vol. i. p. 14). superio 

d. Mr. Hind (K. K. p. 202) says that " at or near the various works: 
posts along " the Kahministikwoya route there " are found 
substantial records of far more extensive settlements than 

now exist and a higher degree of civilization and improvement," 
" which date from the time of the North- West Company." (See 
also ih. p. 106, and Bal. p. 245.) 
. a. The extent of the cultivated ground at Fort William is, at image, 

° and 

present, but 100 acres ; in the days of the North- West Com- 
pany it was 200. "This " — says Mr. Jessop [see a. n. 46, (4.) 
A.] — " is evident from the number of drains — some covered, 
and others open — that are now nearly filled up, in the unculti- 
vated portions of" the farm. 



* It is sometimes called Red River of the tiorth, to distinguish it from Red 
River of the South (a tributary of the Missi-sippi, that flows through 
Louisiana). 

f " The great fur-companies had one of their most important stations at La 
Pointe ; more especially the once so powerful North-We^t Company, which 
carried on a lively trade from this spot as far as the Polar Seas " (K. p. 2). 

s2 



260 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

47. Again, " the soil of the garden was brought from the foot of 
the Kah-kahbeka Falls in the time of the North-West Com- 
pany's glory" (Hi. vol. i. chap. i.). 

Again, the delta-island [see VII. 1, 2 (first lines)] opposite 
Fort William, now for the most " covered with a second growth " 
(E. E. p. 199) was then completely cleared of its tamaraks and 
other trees (ib.). 

road- £. Many traces are to be found of the energy of the Company 

in road-making. In its days there was a good road through 
Savanne (=swamp) ' Portage ' [see a. n. 46, (1.), I.], now the 
f dread of the voyageurs " (E. E. p. 219 ; see also ib. p. 80, and 
Bal. p. 246). There was a road too from Pointe des Meurons,* 
9 \ m. above Fort William, to Whitefish Lake, a little N.E. of 
Arrow Lake,f a piece of water on the Pigeon Eiver route, and 
linked to Whitefish Lake by a 'portage.' This road still "forms 
a winter-route for half-breeds and Indians." (Hi. vol. i. pp. 
32, 217.) 

Profits. e. With regard to its annual profits, — in the fourth year after 

its formation it netted £50,000, a sum exceeding the original 
capital; in the seventh it netted £150,000; and its profits in- 
creased each ensuing year, up to the time of the a amalgamation. 
("Huron"; D. p. 89.) 

Relations /. The rivalry between the two Companies became a feud 

H - B - c - accompanied by personal conflicts ; indeed, Mr. Semple, Go- 
vernor of the Hudson's Bay Company, was killed in a fray near 

* See a. n. 46, (1.), A. a , f. n. 

Mr. Keating (Narrative of an Expedition to the Sources of St. Peter's River) 
was shown the remains of a winter-road opened by Lord Selkirk [see (2.)3 
from the Kahministikwoya to Grand Portage. 

f A road from Pointe des Meurons to Arrow Lake, steam-boat communi- 
cation on Rainy Lake, and a road to Red River through the swamps west of 
the Lake of the Woods are, in the main, the means by which, it is said, For<- 
Garry (Red River) maybe brought within six days of Fort William (Lake 
Superior) and within twenty-two of Liverpool. (Hi. vol. i. p. 217.) 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 261 

Fort Garry.* The natives suffered deplorably from the lavish 47. 
distribution of ' fire-water ' by the hostile parties of ' White 
Men/ Yet the feud was relieved by a frequent interchange of 
hospitalities, especially Christmas balls.f At length the older 
Company offered to share with the younger that monopoly to 
which it had pretended, " and the North-West Company sub- 
scribed to the existence of claims or rights, which they had 
heretofore defied and disputed, fortified by the opinions of such 
men as Lord Brougham, Sir V. Gribbs, Sir A. Pigot, Mr. Sponkie, 
and others " (" Huron " ; D. p. 90). 

C.t a. The Hudson's Bay Company comprises in its service n. b. a »* 

internal 

seven grades. g™^ 

1. The 'labourer' is wood-cutter, snow-clearer, trapper, lts sernce * 
fisherman, or rough carpenter, as occasion requires, and is em- 
ployed during the summer-months in transporting furs and 
goods between his post and the nearest ' depot ' [see b. y (end)]. 

* The particulars may be found in Bal. pp. 94, 95. 

f On one occasion a grand ball, over and above the usual entertainments 
of that kind, was given by the Hudson's Bay Company to the ' Nor'-Wes- 
ters,' in order to get the start of them in trafficking with a band of ' Indians,' 
whose tracks had been observed in the snow by the older Company's scout. 
Their sleighs started in the midst of the merry dance, overtook the ' Red 
Men,' and secured the furs. " Late on the following day the Nor'- West 
scouts reported " the tracks, and " soon a set of sleighs departed from the 
i fort ' " : but, on reaching the ' Indian ' camp " after a long day's march of 
forty miles," . . . "they found all the* Indians' dead-drunk, and not a 
skin left." 

However, the Nor'-Westers soon had their revenge. Parties of both Com- 
panies were out in search of a band of * Indians.' After exchange of com- 
pliments, the Nor'-Westers proposed their lighting a fire and having a dram 
together. They did so, and, while the liquor passed freely, kept up an amce- 
baean rehearsal of adventures. The Nor'-Westers took care to soon spill 
their liquor on the snow, and, at length challenging their rivals to a bumper, 
made them d°ad-drunk, tied them fast in their sleighs, turned the heads of 
the dogs towards the Hudson's Bay ' fort,' " started for the ' Indian ' camp, 
and, this time at least, had the furs all to themselves." (Bal. pp. 90 — 99.) 

% The authority in this part is Bal. (chap, ii.), who was six years in the 
H. B. C.'s service. 

S3 



262 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

47. 2. The 'interpreter' "is, for the most part, an intelligent 
labourer " who has " picked up a smattering of ( Indian.' " 

3. The postmaster is " usually a promoted labourer," and 
is often placed in charge of " a small station. 

4. The ' apprentice-clerk * comes out " fresh from school." 

5. The ' clerk ' is what one of the former grade becomes after 
five years' service. 

6. The ' chief trader * or ' half-share holder' is a 'clerk ' who 
has gone through from thirteen to twenty years' service. 

7. The ' chief factor ' or * share-holder ' is one who has 
served the Company a few years more. 

Local b. a. The Company has, for its own convenience, divided the 

arrange* ... . . 

ments : territories it trades in into four ' departments.' 

4 depart- r 

ments,' ^ r^ < Northern Department' (virtually the north-western) 

includes the establishments on Eainy Lake and Ked Eiver, as 
well as those north of them. 

2. The ' Southern Department ' (virtually the central depart- 
ment) contains those at the head of James' Bay [see a. n. 35, 
(2.)], as well as Lac Seul Fort, Neepigon House, and those along 
the shores of Lake Superior. 

3. The 'Montreal Department* (virtually the eastern 'de- 
partment ') includes the Eiver Ottawa and the region east of it. 

4. The ' Columbia Department ' (virtually the western) com- 
prises the country west of the Eocky Mountains, including the 
Oregon Territory, which belongs to the United States, and pos- 
sessing an agency in the Sandwich (or Hawaii) Islands. 

'districts,' )8. Each 'department' is divided into 'districts,' each of 

and 

which has its presiding officer. 
* forta,' or 7. Each ' district ' contains posts, which are called ' forts ' or 
' houses.' Most of them are called ' forts,' though the name 
can scarce apply well to any but Fort Garry and Stone Fort 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 263 

(both on Red Hirer), " which are surrounded by stone walls 47. 
with bastions at the corners," while " the others are merely de- 
fended by wooden pickets or stockades," indeed " a few, where 
the ' Indians ' are quiet and harmless, are entirely destitute of 
defence. Some of the chief posts have a complement of about 
thirty or forty men ; but most of them have only ten, five, four 
or even two, besides" the superintendent. 

One of these posts in each ' department ' is its c depot.' * 

(2.) A. Fort "William stands on the left bank of the northern, fort 

WILIJAM. 

or main, channel of the three in which the Kahministikwoya site. 
ends its course, and is about § m. from the mouth. 

B. "'A grand annual council of the " North-West " Company " Tost 

° j. t/ grandeuA 

(which erected Fort William) "was held here, and we hear tra- 
ditions of banquets, and crowds of clerks, and armies of 
hangers-on of all kinds. The place was strong enough to induce 
Lord Selkirk f, who came up with hostile intent, to take the 
trouble to bring up with him a field-piece, which he planted on 
the opposite bank of the river, to make them open their doors." 
(C. p. 83.) 

C. "But all this has now disappeared. The trade has fallen Decay. 
off, the gross receipts being now, they say, only about £600 per 
annum " (and this, probably, only Canadian ' currency,' and = 
£480 sterling) . . . "Although the courtyard is surrounded by a 
palisade, and there is a barbican-gateway, as at the Pic " [Pic 
House, an H. B. C. post at the mouth of Pic River (see a. n. 69)], 
"yet these fortifications are not very formidable at present; 

* A table (taken from the H. B. C. ' blue book,') of the H. B. C. estab- 
lishments,— showing their 'departments,' ■ districts,' and "number of 
' Indians ' frequenting," — may be found in R. R. (pp. 415, 416). 

f He builc Fort des Meurons on the point (10 m. up the river) to which it 
gave its name. The remains of this ' fort ' and of a road thence to Grand 
Portage, both of them creations of the energetic founder of the Red River 
settlement, were shown to Mr. Keating. [See (I.), B. d. 0. f. n.] 

S4 



264 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

47. the old block-house * behind is falling to pieces, and the ban* 
queting-hall has probably been burnt up for firewood, — at least, 
we saw nothing there that looked like it." {lb.) 
Present D, However Fort William is still a post of no little importance. 

vmport- •*■ x 

Position. a - In the chain of British possessions, that stretches across 
North America, it is the link between Canada proper and the 
Ked Kiver settlement, and still more markedly so than hereto- 
fore, now that the Canadian government has laid out the lower 
part of its valley into ' townships ' [see a. n. 40, (4.), CI. 

Fish: b. Again, "it is still a very important fishing-station " (Bal. 

p. 251). 

lake. ol. The lake-trout [see XI. f. n. q, and a. n. 77], which are 

trout, and 

" caught m abundance " m nets, " sometimes measure 3 f. 

long, and are proportionately broad" (ib.). 
whitefisn. 0. "Many hundreds of" whitefish [see XI. (f. n. r, and 

passim), as well as a. n. 77] " are salted there annually for the 

Canada markets " (ib.). 
canoes. c. A largef store of canoes [a. n. 51] is kept there, of sizes 

respectively suitable for Lake Superior or the meres and streams 

north-west of it. (Ib.) 
origin of E. Among the employes of the Company at Fort William one 

its em- 
ploye's. ma y fi n( j no t merely Anglo-Canadians, Franco- Canadians, Scot- 
tish Highlanders, Irishmen, and half-breeds, but Orkneyans, 
Norwegians, and G-ermans f (VII. 1.). 
Live stock F. The live stock comprise horses, sheep, and pigs, as well as 
fifty cows (see VII., 2, and f. n. d). 

* Mr. Jessop says that there were four, and that two of them are still in 
existence, one of which was formerly used as a prison. 

f " Some 70 or 80 were lying here in store " (C. p. 83). 

t In our visit to the Fort shortly after our arrival off it (see VII. 3), we 
met a canoe sent out to our steamer. Besides * Indian* boys, it contained 
two Germans, and one Orkneyan. The ' interpreter ' mentioned in the foot- 
note to a. n. 41 (p. 239) was a half-breed, his father having been a Scotchman. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 265 

48. 
The Ojtbwas and theib Neighbours. 

(1.) The Ojibwas. 

A. Their names. 

a. Ojibwag, &c. 

a. Various shapes. 
j3. Derivation. 

b. Sauteaux, &c. 

a. Various shapes. 
/3. Derivation. 

B. Their physical peculiarities. 

C. Their " village " on the Kahministikwoya. 

a. Its general aspect. 

b. The interiors of two wigwams. 

c. The inmates of one of them. 

d. The inmates of the other. 

e. The chief, and his family. 

a. The chief. 

/S. His squaw. 

y. His children. 
/. The mien of these Ojibwas. 
g. The number of the band. 
h. The date of the settlement. 

D. Their situation. 

(2.) The situations of their neighbours. 

A. That of the Mohawks (or Iroquois). 

B. That of the Odahwas. 

C. That of the Dakotas (or Sioux). 

D. That of the Crees. 

E. That of the ' montagnais ' (or TinnS). 

(1.) A. a. a. The best way of writing their tribal name in the 

K ' J ° t OJIBWAS. 

the singular seems to be Ojibwa (to be pronounced * or written f q^SSb 
Odjibwa), the plural being Ojibwag.} Chippewa seems to be Sapea, 

and 

such a dialectic variety § as tcheemahn is of jeemahn, a canoe. 

* C. p. 38. K. (p. 385) speaks of an individual among them named 
Ojibiwas. 

t So I find it in Dr. Schoolcraft's Oneota, p. 82. 

% Assik. The plural is marked by the suffix of a ' g.' See a. n. 33 (1.) 
B. b. 

§ See a. n. 39 (2.), B. b. 



•266 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

48. Such designations as Ojibbeways and Chipewyans (Bal. p. 41) 
are, I need not say, loose modes of writing the name. 

t\on Va " &' ^e wor( * would seem to be an abbreviation of odgidjida, = 

' a brave man.' * 

sauteaux, b. a. The Oiibwas are often called Sauteaux or Sauteurs, and 

shapes, in these words, as well as in the word ' Saut,' from which they 
are derived, the letter ' t ' is often preceded by ' 1,' the Franco- 
Canadians, like the inhabitants of the Channel Islands, having 
retained the French current at the time when they parted from 
the main stock. 

deriva. )8. The tribe is so called from that branch of it t which is 

tion. 

settled at Saut Ste. Marie, 
Physical B. They have " a straighter nose, rather greater fullness of 

peculi- 
arities. f aC6j an( ^ less-projecting cheek-bones, than the western ' Indians ' " 

(C. p. 39). 
Their t C. The following (a.—f.) sections, descriptive of the Ojibwa 
°Kahmi- " tillage " \ on the northern of the two islands comprised by the 
Iwoya. delta of the t Kahministikwoya, are extracted, with but slight 

alterations in expression and arrangement, from my wife's account, 

in her journal, of her visit to it. 
General a. " The village consisted of about ten wigwams, situated on 

aspect. 

the bank of the river at short distances from each other. Strange- 
looking structures were they. They were covered, from the base 
to the top, with sheets of birch-bark, overlapping each other, 
and looking very much like sheets of whity-brown paper. They 
were open at the top, through which the supporting stakes pro- 
truded, crossing each other. The entrance of the wigwam was 
closed by a blanket more or less tattered and dirty. Fish were 

* This title " is to the ' Indians ' the highest on earth. In order to gain it, 
they will run to the end of the earth." (K. p. 121.) 
t a. n. 28 (4.) ; XI. f. n. i (p. 110). 
% R. R. p. 199. I have adopted the term in VII. 1 (end). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 267 

drying on the outside of the walls of some of them. Near them, 48. 
scattered on the ground, were some bowls containing prepara- 
tions of meal ; one of these bowls had in it a rough wooden 
spoon, which resembled a miniature shovel."* Almost every wig- 
wam had attached to it several gaunt, wolfish-looking, and 
surly-visaged dogs. We drove them off; yet their growls and 
close approaches were anything but agreeable. 

b. We entered two of the wigwams. They were not dirty, as interiors 

of two 

far as the small amount of light admitted of one's judging, wigwams, 
But, in both, the blanket-door was most carefully closed, and the 
heat was intense. The beds were heaps of hemlock-twigs, f with 
blankets or rabbit- skin rugs for coverlets. The ashes on the 
centre of the floor marked the fire-place. \ 

c. In one of these squatted three men and three women. One inmates 

of one.; 

of the women was employed in mending an old moccasin. § The 
men were smoking. The child of one couple came in, the oddest 

* VIII. 3; a. n. 57 (3.), A. The long-established use of bowls and spoons 
in taking food is observed in Mr. Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha, which, like 
Virgil's JEneis and Sir Walter Scott's Lay of the Last Minstrel, is. indepen- 
dently of its poetical beauties, of high value as a careful representation 
— iudeed, a tableau vivant — of ancient life. 

" Sumptuous was the feast Nokomis 

Made at Hiawatha's wedding; 

All the bowls were made of bass-wood, 

"White, and polished very smoothly, 

All the spoons of horn of bison, 

Black, and polished very smoothly." 



" Then the generous Hiawatha 
Led the strangers to his wigwam, 



(H. xi.) 



And the careful old Nokomis 

Brought them food in bowls of bass-wood." 

(H. xxii.) 
The bass-wood is the American linden (Tilia Americana). 
f On the hemlock-tree see a. n. 5. 

X In VIII. (2.) I have described the interior of one of the wigwams at the 
Mission. 
§ a. n. 53. 



268 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

48. little creature one could behold. It was clothed in a little sheep- 
skin jacket all in tatters, under which was a little tattered shirt. 
Its long black hair nearly concealed its face. Both parents 
seemed very fond of it. They were a good-tempered, bright- 
mannered, and anything but ugly set : indeed one young woman 
was quite nice-featured. 

inmates d. In the other squatted three women, differently occupied. 

other. One of them was taking care of her pappoose* which she placed 
* on end/ for our inspection, partly unlacing its bead-embroidered 
casing. These, too, were a pleasant-looking group, and seemed 
to enjoy our visit, making remarks to each other in their gut- 
tural tongue, which sounded not unlike German.f 

The chief, e. Outside a third wigwam were the chief, his squaw, and his 

family. children. A more hideous and unpleasant-looking set one could 
not imagine. 

The chief. a. The chief, in shirt and trowsers,| lay reclining on the 
ground, smoking sullenly, barely looking at us, and seeming 
desirous of shewing us marked indifference. The usual straight 
long hair straggled down his face. His head was adorned with a 
dark-blue band of cloth, into which he had stuck a circle of 
upright feathers. His thin moccasins were wet through, and he 
looked miserable. This habit of disregarding damp feet is, I 
am told, the chief cause of consumption being so prevalent 
among the ' Indians.' 

His 0. The squaw of this man was even uglier than himself. 

She was dressed in a blue flannel gown and in trowsers of the 
same material, j When she tossed aside her matted black locks, 
she shewed a face thoroughly furrowed and wrinkled, and literally 

* a. n. 50. 

f The Ojibwa language " sounded occasionally much like Platt-Deutsch " 
(C.p.39). 
I See a. n. 53. 



squaw. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 269 

tattooed with seams. No gleam or smile could be discerned on 48. 
it. She looked half man, half monkey, as she scraped together 
scattered pieces of wood and shavings, to feed the fire she had 
kindled outside the wigwam. 

y. Her two children stood by her. Stupid and cheerless, they The 

j«T it -i • children. 

did not belie their parentage. 

f. I was struck with the total lack of vigour and spirit in the Mien 
countenance of these 'Indians.' The women were rather the °J ibwas « 
livelier looking. There was not a trace of fierceness and cun- 
ning, — except perhaps, in the chief, and, still more, in his squaw." 

g. I asked the younger of the two priests at the Mission Number. 
[a. n. 57] the number of these Ojibwason the Kahministikwoya, 
including those who had been ' converted ' and seceded from 
those on the island. His answer was : — " Environ trois cents." 

" The number of ' Indians ' frequenting Fort William (that |is of 
this Ojibwa band) in 1856" is returned in the H. B. C. 'blue 
book* as 350. 

h. It was in the year 1841 that this settlement received the Date of 

" the settle- 

formal sanction of Sir George Simpson, the then Governor of the ment - 

Hudson's Bay Company (Simp.). 

D. The Ojibwas are scattered over the region extending from situation. 
Lakes Simcoe and Kootchi-tching [see a. n. 10] to Eainy Lake 
and the Lake of the Woods * (K. E. pp. 115, 45). 

This tribe is, par excellence, the tribe of Lake Superior. 

(2.) The following, on the situations of their neighbours, neigh- 
begins with those in the southeast. 

(2.) A. The Mohawks (or Iroquois) f are scattered along The 

MohawKS 

Lakes Erie t and Ontario, as well as the Kiver St. Lawrence. § (<"• . % 

t ' " Iroquou). 

* Some 50 m. N.W. of Rainy Lake. 

t The Odahwas call them the Nahdowag (see a. n. 15). 

J Those on Grand River are more particularly mentioned in a. n. 10. 

§ East of them are the Mikmaks. 



270 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

48. B. There are some of the Odahwa * tribe in Great Mahni- 

The 

Odahwa* toolin Island [see a. n. 20], and in a village on the eastern coast 

of Lake Michigan, about 40 m. S.W. of the Strait of Mackinaw, f 

The C. The Dakotas, J often called the Sioux, are scattered over 

Dakotas. 

the region watered by the northern tributaries of the Mississippi.! 
The Crees D. West of the Ojibwas are the Crees.|| 
The ~E>. ' The wild rocky ranges that form the common water-shed 

♦ Moving- J ° 

?"nn'e> r °f Laurentian and Hudson's Bay waters are scantily inhabited 

* Commonly, but improperly, written Ottawa (Assik.). 

t This village is the only trace left of the conquest and consequent 
occupation of that part of the State of Michigan by the Odahwas of Great 
Mahnitoolin Island at the beginning of the seventeenth century. After 
having dwelt on the island at least as far back as the time when the New 
World was discovered by the Europeans, they then wrested it from a tribe 
called the Mushkodenshes (the singular form being -densh or -denge, the 
plural -denshug). They did so in a war declared in consequence of a youth 
of that tribe having told them, while they sang a lament on their way home, 
that they had deserved their defeat in a raid made against the Winibigoes, 
who at that time occupied the region northwest of Lake Michigan. In the 
year 1830, or thereabouts, they surrendered it to the ' Americans,' and a few 
years afterwards many of them, naturally enough, returned to the island 
which had been the home of their ancestors. 

(My information about the Odahwas is obtained from Assik.) 

X ' Dakota ' means ' allied ' (Hi. vol. ii. p. 153). 

Another name of the! tribe is Nadouessi. They were heard of under this 
name by the Jesuit missionaries (Raymbault and Jogues), who reached the 
Ojibwa settlement at Saut Ste. Marie at the close of September, 1641. (F. and 
W., Introd.) 

" They speak of themselves as the * Oketi Sakowin' or * Seven Council- 
fires'" (Hi. ib.). 

% Raymbault and Jogues were told of the ferocity of the Dakotas. They 
have recently, it is said, given proof of it by their massacre of five hundred 
White Men in the State of Minnesota, by way of revenge for the non-payment 
of the annual 'presents,' or yearly recompense for the surrender of their 
hunting-grounds. 

They were also told of that standing feud between the Dakotas and the 
Ojibwas, which has not yet died out (K p. 121 and passim; R. R. pp. 46, 
116). This feud and the fierceness of the tribe are alluded to in H. x. 

From the meanings of the words 'Dakota' and 'Oketi Sakowin' they 
would seem to be a composite tribe. 

I! See a. n. 27 (1.). Much information about them may be found in Hi. 
and in Bah 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 271 

by an ultra-savage people — Hibernis ipsis Hiberniores, — whom 48. 
the half-Europeanized Ojibwas term l les montagnais* * or 'gens 
des hauteurs'. 'f 



49. 
The Tamarak.j: 

(l.) Names. 

(2.) ' Habitat.' 

(3.) Numerousness. 

(4.) Height. 

(5.) Wood. 

A. Characteristics. 

B. Uses.§ 

(1.) This tree is technically termed Larix microcarpa ( = small- names. 
coned larch) or Larix || Americana ( = American larch). The 
' voyageurs' call it Veypinette rouge, the Crees waggind-gan ( = the 
tree that bends), the tribes of the Laurentian lakes tamarak or 
hakmatak (Kich. vol. ii. p. 318). 

(2.) It is found as far south as Virginia, but there it is 'Habitat. 
confined to the mountains ; it grows in the swamps of the 
Northern States ; it ranges all across the continent from New^ 

* Perhaps Tinne [see a. n. 27, (1.)] is an abbreviation of montagnais. 

t Herr Kohl (K. p. 420) was given an account of them, from which the 
following is extracted : — " They sleep in the middle of winter on the naked 
snow, at the most with un petit brin de. sapin as shelter over it. They live 
not much better than the beasts, and are as timid and shy. Cest terrible 
comme ca mange. If one of these hunters brings home twenty hares, his 
squaw throws ten of them into the kettle, and puts the rest on the spit, and 
they eat them all up. When they have enough, they will eat the whole night 
and day through. On the other hand they will march five days and nights 
without eating a morsel. They dress in hare-skins, which they fasten tightly 
round their bodies ; and wear them till they drop off." 

% Mentioned in VI. 14 ; VII. 3, 6 ; VIII. 3. 

^ On the use made of its roots see a. n. 52, 

H Larix (Aapi£) is derived from Aapos, ' sweet.' See (5.), A. 



272 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

49. foundland and Labrador to the Pacific Ocean, and northward to 
the Arctic circle (ib.). 
nume- (3.) As a general rule, it is thinly scattered through the 

EOUS- 

ness. ; forest ; it is only on the borders of swamps that it is found m 
multitudes (ib.). 

height. (4.) But there its height is not great (ib.). Elsewhere, how- 
ever, it is sometimes 100 f. high (St. p. 79). 

wood. (5.) A. Its wood is very resinous, and has a delicious scent* 

Charac- 

teristics. I n high latitudes it is very heavy, too much twisted in the grain 
to be readily worked, but tough and very durable (Kich. ib.). 

uses. jj f j n ^ e construction of his wigwam, the Eed Man prefers 

its wood to that of other trees (K. p. 5). The White Man uses 
it in ship-building (St. ib.). 



50. 

The Ojtbwa in the Cradle. 

(1.) The tikkinagon (=the cradle). 
(2.) The pappoose (=the encased child). 
(3.) The agwin-gweon (=the bow over the child's head). 
(4.) The apekun (=the band by which the mother carries the cradled 
pappoose)* 

the (1.) The cradle, if one may so term it, is called tikkinagon,^ 

agon. —'a little house within a house,' i.e. a little house within the 
wigwam [a. n. 54]. It is constructed thus. A flat board is 
made of poplar wood, because this wood is light and does not 
crack or splinter. To this is fastened with wattap [a. n. 52] 
a small frame of thin peeled wood, shaped much after the shape 
of the child's body, and standing out as the sides of a violin do 

* So we found, when, while we were at anchor in Thunder Bay, the 
4 Indians ' supplied us with fire-wood, most of which was tamarak. 
t So Dr. Schoolcraft writes the word. Herr Kohl writes tikinagan. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 273 

from the sounding-board. The cavity is filled with a mixture, 50. 
composed of very fine dry moss, rotted cedar- wood, and a tender 
wool found in the seed-vessels of a species of reed. 

(2.) Immediately after birth, the child is stretched out in the pap- 

POOSE. 

this cradle. There is a little foot-board for the feet to rest on. 
Moss is placed between the heels of a female infant to make its 
toes turn in ;* in the case of a male, the moss is so adjusted as 
to keep the feet perfectly straight.f It is wrapped in a blanket, 
and a bandage of cloth, if the mother can get it, is bound round 
the whole body. The head is always free, and sometimes the 
arms. So the pappoose looks just like a tittle mummy with a 
living head. \ 

(3.) At a convenient distance above the head, a stiff wooden the 

x ' AGWIN- 

bow, called agwin-gweon, is fastened to the tikkinagon. It gweon. 
serves as a protection to the head, — so much so that you may roll 
the tikkinagon over as much as you please, without hurting the 
child. Erom it hang a multitude of little things, within reach 
of the child's hands. " I suspect," says Herr Kohl, " that all 
these things are placed there more for a good omen than as 
playthings : the moccasins, that the boy may be a good runner; 
the bow, arrows, and bones, that he may become a famous 
hunter." § 

* Dr. Schoolcraft, who says this, does not state the object of so unnatural 
a distortion. 

t Herr Kohl says that this is done in order to fit the feet for the use of the 
snow-shoe [a. n. 73]. 

% So wrote my wife of the pappoose, which I mention in VII. 7. The 
father, who was accompanied in his canoe by the mother and an older child, 
gently handed it up the side of the steamer. Though waked up, it stood 
the flare of a lantern held close to its face, without winking or crying. It 
fully bore out what Dr. Schoolcraft says,— viz. that the child " seems per- 
fectly contented, and rarely, if ever, cries." Probably many a White Man 
would be glad if his" squaw' adopted the tranquilizing boards and bandages 
of her Red sister. 

§ " A tiny bow and arrow is given to the little a-bin-6-jee (child) as a 
T 



274 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

50. (4.) The band, by which the ' squaw '* carries the cradled 
apekun. pappoose or hangs it up in the wigwam, is called the apekun.f 
It is often richly embroidered.]: 



51. 

The Canoe of North America. 

(1.) Its Ojibwa name. 
(2.) Its materials. 

A. Those of its skeleton. 

B. Those of its body. 
(3.) Different kinds. 

(4.; My experience of a small one. 

A. Its capacity. 

B. Its leakiness. 

C. Its ' crankiness.' 

ojibwa (1.) The Ojibwa name of the canoe, if written in accordance 

with pronunciation, is jeemahn (K. p. 34) or tcheemahn (H. vii.).§ 

mate- (2.) A. What may be termed its skeleton is made of the 

RIALS Of 

its skeleton elastic branches of the white cedar, || or, in very high latitudes, 
of those of the white spruce. ^f 

plaything. As soon as he acquires strength, he is encouraged to " shoot " at 
small birds or squirrels " [XI. 1. (5.)]. " The first evidence of success is 
extravagantly praised ; and the object killed, however small, is prepared by 
the females for a feast, to which the chiefs and warriors are ceremoniously 
invited." (Sch. I. part II. p. 50.) 

* 'Squaw' is an English corruption of squeiaw, = 'a woman.' (Bal. 
p. 60.) 

t So Sch. writes. K. writes apikan. 

X They also embroider the coverlet, and to an extent which is, to them, 
very costly. Substantially, this note is compiled from K. (pp. 6 — 9), and 
Sch. i. (part ii. p. 66). 

§ So we have Ojibwa and Chippewa. 

|| On the other names of this tree, its ' habitat,' and other uses of its 
wood, see a. n. 24, and f. n. Wattap [a. n. 52] is sometimes made from its 
roots. 

% The white spruce is the Abies alba of botany, the epinctte blanche of the 
* voyageurs? and the mina-hik of the Crees. It is the common spruce of 



FEKENT 
KIXDS. 



APPENDIX-NOTES, 275 

B. What may be termed its body is made of large rolls of 51. 
birch-bark [a. n. 27, (I,)* f. n.].* These are sewn together with ZJy* 
wattap [a. n. 52]. To keep the water out, the rosin of the pine 
is smeared over all the holes of the branches, and all the seams, 
stitches, and weak parts of the bark.f 

(3.) "There are of course considerable variations in the size bjf- 
and build of the canoes " (K. p. 34). There is the goods-canoe 
(canot de charge)], and the passenger-canoe (canot a lege). (lb.) 
Again, some of the latter, being built for the waves of Lake 
Superior, require four men to carry them ; others, being built 
for the smaller lakes, require but two (Bal. p. 252). There is a 
still smaller kind, which can be carried by one man, and of 
which probably K. (p. 174) writes thus: — "when a trio of 
human bodies are stretched out on the wooden ribs of such a 
wretched fragile " water-lily " [H. vii.], made of thin birch- 
bark, without the slightest comfort, no bench or support, not 
even a bundle of hay or straw, such inconveniences are ex- 
tremely unpoetical." 

(4.) A. That, in which I had a tripS on the Kahministi- mtexpk- 

OF A 
SMALL 

the New England States and the British Provinces, and its ' habitat ' is °>' E - 
supposed to extend to the Pacific. It is the chief forest-tree of Rupert's 
Land. In high latitudes, its age " exceeds 400 years before it shows signs of 
decay." (Rich. vol. ii. p. 317.) North of Lake Winnipeg, its wood, exclu- 
sively, is used •* for building purposes, sawing into deals, and boat-building " 
(ib.). Wattap [a. n. 52] is often made from its roots. 

* This material " is so tough, that a round stone has often been known to 
smash the ribs of the vessel without breaking the skin " (Simp.). 

" Where birch-bark is scarce, a rude canoe is formed of the bark of a 
spruce-fir" (Rich. ib.). 

f The foregoing is taken chiefly from K. (pp. 29—32), where may be found 
a full account of the construction of the canoe, which well illustrates H. vii. 

X It was in canoes of this kind that the wood was brought to us on the 
morning after our arrival off Fort William. I accompanied the ■ Indians ' 
returning in an empty one, in order to get there a light canoe for the ascent 
of the river. 

§ The subject of VIII. 

T 2 



276 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

51. kwoya, was obviously intended for but two inmates. The benches 
capacity, were occupied by the two * Indian ' boys, who paddled it. But 

little room was left for myself and my companion, a young man 

of quite the average obesity. 
its B. The thin birch-bark bottom* of the canoe proved leaky, 

Uakiness. 

and we were glad enough to reach the ' clearing ' at the Mission 
[a. n. 57, (3.)]. The boys understood no tongue but Ojibwa. 
We pointed, however, to the unpleasant amount of water in the 
canoe, and, on our return, found they had emptied it and put in 
a doubled roll of birch-bark. But the water still came in. 
its cranici- C. And, — what was fraught with more immediate risk, and 

ness- 

gave the trip a fresh dash of ' pleasing uncertainty,' — we were, 
again and again, nearly upset by the recklessness of the boys. 
I now and then intimated to them that I wished to have some 
flowerf on the margin of the river, and thus became possessed 
of a specimen of each species. At length, I pointed to a kind 
of iris. They not only got the one I desired, but persisted in 
getting every one we passed, and, in so doing, heedlessly ran 
the canoe at full speed against the trees and snags. In the 
whirl of the recoil, it was no easy thing to balance ourselves or 
the ' cranky ' craft. It was some time before I could make them 
understand that I wanted no more than one specimen. I after- 
wards heard that the ' Indians ' make a medical decoction from 
the iris. Hence, perhaps, it was that irises \ were preserved in 
the wigwam which I entered ; and hence, too, the boys may 
have thought that I should like to have all I could get. 

* " In our boats the ribs are supported by the keel, from which they stand 
out like the branches on a tree. But as these canoes have no keel, the 
varangues and barres are necessarily tied to a piece of wood," which "runs 
round the gunwale." (K. p. 30.; For my use of the word ' keel ' in VIII. 2, 
I must claim ' poetic license.' It is not so lax as that of the Latin carina, 

t a. n. 46 (1.), A. h. 

t VIII. 2 (end). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 277 

52. 
Wattap. 

(1.) What it is. 
(2.) Its uses. 

A. For sewing birch-bark. 

B. For fishing-net ropes. 

(1.) This word — which I have found spelt wattap (C), watap what it 

is. 
(Kich., and Hi.), watab (K.) and wattape (Bal.) — is the name 

given by the Eed Man to the roots of certain trees, when split 

for purposes that will be stated presently. I find mentioned 

the roots of the tamarak* the 'white cedar, 'f the white spruce,]: 

and the ground-hemlock (Taxus Canadensis).^ 

(2.) A. It is used for sewing together pieces of birch-bark, || uses. 

for the construction or repair of canoes ^| or makaks** selling 

iirch- 

B. Again, they make " stout, cords out of it, and, for their barl '- 
fishing-nets, ff the ropes often reach a length of fifty yards, ™ g -net 
These cords last a long time, and resist the influence of water. 
They can be laid up for two years without deteriorating. If 
damped, they become as supple as leather. The people here 
give them a preference over hemp- ropes," because they slip 
easily through the hands, do not cut the skin, and feel warmer 
in winter. (K. ib.$\) 

* H. vii. ; Hi. vol. i. p. 274, note. On the tree and its other names see 
a. n. 49. 

t K. p. 31. 

% Rich. vol. ii. p. 317 ; K. p. 31 ; C. p. 64. C. (id.) says that wattap " is 
usually said to be spruce roots." 

§ C. ib. In p. 37 bespeaks of the use of pine roots : and so does Bal. (p. 185). 

I! VIII. 2 (p. 70). 

TT Rich., Bal., C, K., Hi.; ib. 

** Cases for holding maple-sugar [a. n. 58], prepared whortleberries [see 
a. n. 24], &c. 

ft See a. n. 77. 

XX "The women," he says, "are always busy in twisting watab, owing to 
the large quantities used." [See XI. p. 112.] 
T 3 



278 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



53. 



The Garb of the half-Europeanized Bed Man. 



(10 


Capote. 




A. Summer. 




B. Winter. 


(20 


Leggings. 


(3.) 


Shirt. 


(4.) 


Head-dress. 


(5.) 


Mittens. 


(6.) 


Moccasins. 


(70 


Socks. 



capote. (1.) A. The summer*-ca»ofo consists either of a blue or erey 

Summer. v ' M ° J 

cloth, or else of a blanket. It reaches below the knees, and is 
" strapped round the waist with a scarlet or crimson worsted 
belt." (Bal. p. 43.) 

wmter. B. The w'mtex-capote is made of smoked deer-skin, which 
looks very like chamois-leather. It is lined with flannel, or 
some other thick warm substance, and is edged with fur of dif- 
ferent kinds. {lb.) 

leggings. (2.) They make, of various kinds of cloth, leggings, f "which 
reach from a few inches above the knee down to the ankle. 
These leggings are sometimes very tastefully decorated with 
bead- work, particularly those of the women, J and are provided 
with flaps or wings on either side." {lb.) 

* " The summer-dress of the ' Indian' is, almost entirely, provided him by 
the Hudson's Bay Company" (Bal. ib.). 

t Deer-skin leggings were a part of the ancient costume of the Red Man. 
(Sch. i.) The only peculiarity that I considered noteworthy in the costume 
of the Kahministikwoya Ojibwas was their wearing, in one or two instances, 
red trowsers, made to open at the outside all the way down, and decorated 
in the leg much as the moccasins. 

X The other difference between the dress of the men and that of the 
women, is that the latter wear, instead of a capote, a. gown "of coarse blue 
or green cloth " (ib.). That of the Kahministikwoya Ojibwas [a. n. 48, (1.), 
C. j was of a dark blue colour. It is " very scanty in the skirt," and " reaches 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 279 

(3.) ''Avery coarse blue striped cotton shirt is all the under- 53. 
clothing they wear M {ib. ). SmET ' 

(4.) "Thev seldom wear a hat or cap of any kind, except in dkab- 

DBSSS. 

winter, when thev make clumsy imitations of foraging-caps with 
furs, — preferring, if the weather be warm, to go about without 
any head-dress at all. or, if it be cold, using the large hood of 
their capotes as a covering"* (ib. p. -±2). 

(5.) In the winter thev wear " fmgerless mittens, with a place mittens 
for the thumb " (ib.). 

(6.) On their feet thev wear moccasins, which are coverings siocca- j 
"made of brown tanned deer-hide" (K p. 339), fitting "as 
tightly as a glove," and "tastefully ornamented with dyed por- 
cupine-quills and silk-thread of various colours ;f at which work 
the women are particularly aufait " t (Bal. ib.). " In their moc- 
casins," — says Herr Kohl (K. ib.) in a paragraph on the supe- 
riority, on various accounts, of moccasins to boots and shoes, — 
" they say they can get along much quicker, f especially over the 
swamps.'' 

(7.) " As the leather of the moccasin is very thin, blanket socks. 
and flannel socks are worn underneath '' (except in the short 
summer). — " one, two, or even four pairs, according to the 
degree of cold"' (Bal. ib.). 

a little below the knee." The whole costume, however, of both sexes, out- 
side of the wigwam, is usually concealed by a blanket. (Ib.) 

* " The women usually make the top of the blanket answer the purpose of 
a head-dress. But, when they wish to appear very much to advantage, they 
put on " a cap consisting of " a square niece of cloth, profusely decorated with 
different-coloured beads, and merely sewed at the top. They wear their hair 
in long straggling locks, which have not the slightest tendency to curl, and 
occasionally in queues or pigtails behind " (Bal. ib.). I found some of the 
men among the Kahministikwoya Ojibwas wearing their 'back-hair' in 
plaits (VII. 8). 

t VII. «; VIII. 2 (p. 71). 



T 4 



280 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



54. 
The Wigwam. 

The word wigwam should be written wigiwam. and is derived 
from wigiwass, — ' the birch-tree' or 'birch-bark' (K. p. 333). 
It is incorrect to apply this name to any dwelling but that 
covered with birch-bark.* In summer, some of the Ojibwas 
"have more spacious, lofty, and airy" abodes, "four-sided, 
having an oblique roof, and covered with shingles. They are 
not called wigwams" (K. p. 12.) 



55. 

EJEETCHI-GrAHMI WASHK.f 

(1.) What it is. 
(2.) Its use. 
(3.) The process. 

(1.) Keetchi-Gahmi\ washk is = ' Big-Water bulrush,' i. e. 
bulrush of Lake Superior. It is the name of " a species of 
thick reed," which grows in that lake. (K. p. 40.) 

(2.) The Ojibwas " form of it very soft and lasting mats, . . . 
with which " they " cover the walls of their wigwams, and 
which also serve as carpets, beds, and sofas." § (lb. ; cf. p. 
381.) 

* VIII. 2 (pp. 70, 71). On " the sheltering bark," see a. n. 27, (I.), f. n. 
In the construction of the skeleton, the tamarak is the tree preferred [a. n. 
49, (5.), B.]. 

t This note illustrates VIII. 2 (pp. 71, 72), and XI. (pp. 96, 112). 

% See. a. n. 33, (1.). 

§ Herr Kohl (K. ib.) found this matting in the wigwams of the Ojibwas 
of the southern shores of Lake Superior, and I found it in that which I 
entered at the Mission [VIII. 2]. But it did not meet my wife's eye in the 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 281 

(3.) They " are the handiwork of the women, and are excel- 55. 
lently made. The mode of working is extremely complicated, Jko CES8 . 
and the result of considerable thought. The reeds must only 
be cut at one period of the year, when they have attained a 
certain ripeness. They are fastened up in small bundles, each 
of which is boiled in hot water separately for about three- 
quarters of an hour. "Without this process the reeds would 
become harsh and brittle. Bleaching is necessary to prepare 
them for colouring. The women manage to produce really very 
pretty patterns. 

" In plaiting them, they take various precautions, like those of 
the Belgian flax-spinners, who carry on their work in damp 
cellars in order to give the threads the required toughness. The 
1 Indians ' told me they did not plait these mats in dry and 
cheerful weather, but on damp and rainy days, else the reeds 
would become brittle. I lived once in the house of a very in- 
dustrious mat-plaiter ; every night she laid her work out in the 
dew ; next morning she brought it in, and plaited a bit more, 
till the sun rose too high. I asked her why she did not pour 
water on it during the day ; she said that would turn the reeds 
black." 

two, which she entered, on the delta-island. She ohserved only hemlock- 
twigs, with blankets or rabbit-skins as coverlets [a. n. 48, (1.), C. 6.]. So 
Mr. Ballantyne (Bal. p. 47) describes "the floor " of the Red Man's wigwam, 
as " covered with a layer of small pine-branches, which serve for carpet and 
mattrass." However, his acquaintance seems to have been chiefly with the 
Crees, whose ' habitat' is far to the west of Lake Superior. 



282 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

56. 

The Musquash. 

(1.) Characteristics. 
(2.) How killed. 
(3.) Uses after death. 

charac- (1.) The musquash or muskrat (Fiber zebethicus) "abounds in 

TICS - the swamps and rivers of North America, the female having 
three litters of young in the course of the summer, and produc- 
ing from three to seven at each litter (Eich. F. B.). It has a 
peculiar smell, resembling that of musk.* Like the beaver, it 
builds itself mud-dwellings with great ingenuity. Herr Kohl 
(K. p. 185), when crossing the Keweena peninsula [a. n. 65], was 
told " that the loonf lived here with the muskrat, in the same 
way as the owl does with the prairie-dog. The loon lays its 
eggs in the ' loges de rat dleau] as the Canadians call them, and 
they run no risk from the excellent teeth of its little friend." 

how (2.) Musquash-spearing is one of the Eed Man's winter-occu- 

pations. 

uses (3.) Musquash-skins \ are imported into the United Kingdom 

to the amount of 1,000,000, and 150,000 of these are again ex- 
ported ; while the imports of beaver-skins amount to 60,000, 
and the exports to i2,000. The fur resembles that of the 
beaver, and is used by the hat-manufacturer. The skin is dyed 
by the furrier, and many cheap and useful articles are made 
of it. 

* The animal from which the musk of commerce is procured is a native of 
Thibet, 
t I. ; 11, andf. n. g. 
\ VIII. 2 (p. 72). 



AFTER 
DEATH. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 283 

57. 
The Black-robes. 

(1.) This name. 
(2.) Their zeal. 
(3.) Their * mission ' on the Kahministikwoya. 

A. The priests. 

B. The chapel. 

C. The village. 

(1.) The Eed Men call the Jesuits 'the Black Eobes ' on this 

^ ' NAME. 

account of their dress.* "Les sauvages," says Charlevoix (Ch. 
torn. vi. p. 21, notef ), " appellent ainsi les Jesuit es. lis nomment 
les pretres 'les Collets Blancs,' et les Eecollets 'les Kobes 
Grises.' " 

(2.) The zeal of 'the company of Jesus 'j has been abun- their < 
dantly shown in the region of the Laurentian lakes. Their 
Relations (Jes.) are very interesting. Herr Kohl (K. pp. 180 — 
183, 305 — 307, &n.<i passim) often mentions their labours and 
hardships there in our own times. 

(3.) A. My companion and myself were received very ttt e ir v 

ON THE 

Kaiimi- 
* So an old Ojibwa woman calls them in. K. (p. 371). And again, in K. £^£1". 
(p. 180), a ' voyageur' says of one of them : — " He always travels in this 
solemn garb (" his black robe"), on foot or on horseback, on snow-shoes or 
in a canoe." The term is often introduced in H. xxii. 

t By this foot-note Charlevoix explains how 'the savages' — in re-naming 
the Missi-sippi (= Great River [p. 193]), after Father Marquette, who dis- 
covered it and died on its margin — called it* the river of the Black Robe,' 
while the French called it ' the river Marquette.' (" Aujourd'hui les sauvages 
n'appellent cette riviere autrement que la Riviere de la Robe Noire ; les 
Francois lui ont donne le nom du Pere Marquette.") This name of the 
Missi-sippi has passed away, like other names conferred on American locali- 
ties by the French of that age [see a. n. 45 (end), 80] ; but the name of this 
great missionary is attached to the shipping-port of the rich iron-mines on the 
southern coast of Lake Superior. 
tV.fi (p. 36), XII. 6 (p. 123> 



284 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

57. kindly by those of the Kahministikwoya ' mission.' * They 
vriests. S ave us eacn a large f bowl of tea sweetened with maple-sugar 
[a. n. 58], a pleasant assuagement of the thirst caused by expo- 
sure to the noon-tide glow of the July sun. The elder spoke 
English, the younger;}: French only. 
™« B. In the chapel, which I visited on my way from the small 

group of wigwams to the mission-house, the usual concentration 
of ornament at the altar was all the more conspicuous from its 
contrast with the plainness of the building in every other 
respect. § The only decorations of the walls were some cheap 
French coloured prints of the closing scenes of the Gospels. 
In a side-chapel there was a list of those who had received their 
* first communion' on the 14th day of the previous March. It 
contained four male and six female names. 
The C. The mission-house is the nucleus of what Mr. Hind (K. E. 

village. v 

p. 201) calls, in his summary, "the village of the Mission." 
He heard that it consisted of " from thirty to thirty-five houses, 
substantially built of wood, and in their general arrangement 
and construction far superior to the log-houses of Canadian 
pioneers in the forest. Many of them were surrounded with 
gardens — a few of which were in a good state of cultivation, 
and with some small fields fenced in with post and rail." || (lb.) 
I well recollect the charming look of the place itself, to say 
nothing of the luxuriant forest in which it is, as it were, set, 
and the grand scenery that surrounds it.^[ 

* VIII. 2 (p. 70). Its full name is * the Mission' of the Immaculate Con- 
ception.' It is about 3 m. up the river. 

t VIII. 3; a. n. 48, (1.), C. c. 

t a. n.48, (1.), C. g. 

\ VIII. 2,3 (pp. 70, 72). 

|| See a. n. 46, (3.), B., and (4.), B. 

If A Franco-Canadian (named Lambert), who lived in one of these little 
farm-houses, and had sometimes accommodated military men and other 
gentlemen, offered to board and lodge my wife and myself at 6 dollars ( = £1 4s. 
sterling) per week. I mention this for the benefit of our ' vacation-tourists.' 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 285 

58. 
Maple-stjgae. 

Sugar is made in North America, during March and April, 
from the boiled sap of the sugar-maple.* The most saccharine 
trees are those which grow in a stony soil and on hills exposed 
to the east and the south. A cold and dry winter is particularly 
favourable to the production of sugar, and the best run of sap 
is got when a sunny morning has followed a frosty night. The 
tree will often yield fifty gallons of sap, or more ; four pounds 
of sugar is its average product.f 

The Ked Man extracted sugar from the sugar-maple long 
before the discovery of America by the White Man, tapping the 
tree with a long stone, hollowed out, and pointed at the end. 
The knowledge of the art is attributed to the mythical being, 
who is the Eed Man's Prometheus.J Sugar-making gives occa- 
sion to " a sort of 'Indian ' carnival " (Sch. i., part ii., p. 55). 

* The presence of the sugar-maple (Acer saccharinum) is a sure sign of a 
good soil. Its wood, as well as that of the ' rock-maple,' the ' curled,' and 
the ' bird's-eye,' is in high esteem for cabinet-work, and affords excellent 
fuel. " Its ashes are rich in alkali, and furnish most of the potash made in " 
Canada (St. p. 78). Its leaf has, in the ■ fall,' a singularly rich golden hue, 
very conspicuous among the glowing colours then changefully assumed by 
the American forest, after the manner of the dying dolphin. 

t Further information may be got from the following sources :— on the 
process by which ' grain-sugar • is made, from Mrs. Traill's Backwoods of 
Canada (one of Knight's shilling-volumes); — on the preparations called 
' cake-sugar* and 'gum-sugar' (or 'wax-sugar'), from K. (pp. 323, 324); 
— on the subject in general from K. C. (vol. i. pp. 2^0 — 294), and from a paper 
by M. Valentin de Courcel in the Bulletin de la Societe d' Acclimatation for 
February, 1861. 

% See a. n. 39 (p. 235). 



286 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



59. 
McKay's Mountain. 

(1.) Description of it. 

(2.) The view from the top of it. 

(3.) An ascent of it. 

tion RIF " 0-') -A- n ^regular plateau * follows the trend of the coast from 
the mouth of Pigeon Biverf toward that of the Kahministi- 
kwoya. On approaching the latter, it takes a rather more 
northerly direction, diverging from the shore of Thunder Bay, 
to give place to the rank verdure of the delta, whose tamaraks, 
aspens, and willows contrast well with the darker green of the 
pines of its sloping undercliff and the brilliant red of its long 
perpendicular wall of greenstone, J which is "composed of ba- 
saltic columns as regular as those of Staffa " (F. and W. part I. 
p. 19). The ridge terminates abruptly in a grand ' bluff,' § that 
towers above the Kahministikwoya, rising 1,000 f. above Lake 
Superior and 1,600 f. above the ocean. This ' bluff' has re- 
ceived the name of McKay's Mountain. 
vrEw (2.) A traveller, whose account of an ascent of this height 

tor. will be given presently, says that the view from the top is " most 
magnificent." It comprises the luxuriant valley of the winding 
Kahministikwoya, Thunder Bay with its picturesque islands, 
and the grim range of Thunder Mountain ; while the horizon is 
bounded toward the northwest by the ridge that divides the 
tributaries of the St. Lawrence from those of Hudson's Bay, 
toward the southeast by the vast expanse of Lake Superior. 

* " Sugar-maple, and large' white pines' fit for spars, on these hills" (Bay.). 
Compare a. n. 46, (3.), C, and (4.), O. 
t See a. n. 64. 
X See VI. 12 (p. 51). 
§ See VIII. 3 (p. 73). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 2S7 

(3.) Mr. Jessop, of Oshawa (a village on Lake Ontario),* 59. 
made his way to its summit on the 13th of May, 1859, and ascent 

OF IT. 

gave an account of the excursion in a letter to the Oshawa 
Vindicator 7 extracts from which have been already given .f He 
and seven other Canadians had " resolved to find their way 
across to the Pacific, or, at least, to Fraser Eiver," and were 
encamped on the southern bank of the Kahministikwoya, a 
little more than 1 m. from Fort William, awaiting the break-up 
of the ice on Great Dog Lake.J 

He started at 11.30 a.m. At the Mission he engaged a guide. 
They plunged into the forest, and soon encountered a swamp 
from 2 to 3 f. deep. This, and several small streams, had to be 
crossed before they reached the foot of the mountain. "The 
ascent, for some 300 or 400 f., was very difficult, on account of 
the great depth of snow. After reaching the first plateau and 
taking a short rest, we," says Mr. Jessop, " started off for the 
second, which appeared to be a most formidable undertaking. 
The guide, in order to avoid a circuitous route, determined to 
scale several feet of the almost perpendicular rock. After get- 
ting part of the way up, he shouted for me to go farther round. 
This, however, I would not do, unless he could get down again to 
fifteen or twenty inches of a shelf, upon which I stood. He 
found this to be impracticable : so I commenced to [sic] follow 
him. I soon, however, wished myself down again, but too late. 
I dared not look over my shoulder from the giddy height, but 
was obliged to cling to the wet loose pieces of rock, and continue 
my ascent. After a few minutes — which seemed almost an 
age, as one misstep would have precipitated me down several 
hundred feet among the broken fragments of rock on the first 

* It is in the same ■ township' [a. n. 7] as Windsor, 
t See pp. 56, 255. 
% Seep. 251. 



288 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

59. plateau — I reached a safe shelf on the side of the cliff, after 
which the ascent was comparatively easy to the second. The 
guide here started a fire. We then ascended the third and last 
eminence, which was not at all difficult." " The ascent occupied 
an hour." 

In " our descent, we had frequently to leap across cracks in 
the rock 3 or 4 f. in width, with the sides beautifully smooth and 
quite perpendicular to the depth, some of them, of 100 or 150 f. 
One breach in the rock on its summit is 15 or 20 f. in width, 
with tremendous blocks piled one on top of the other, presenting 
a most imposing and picturesque appearance. The snow on the 
summit and sides was from 3 to 4 f. in depth. The guide took 
a different route in descending, which was much easier, though 
further round. Our path was entirely covered with snow, upon 
which we slid 20 or 30 f. at a time, and only stopped ourselves 
by catching hold of the shrubs in our track. In this way we 
reached the bottom." The descent occupied " about twenty-five 
minutes. We were obliged once more to cross the ' creeks ' and 
marsh; and I arrived at our camping-ground about 8 p.m." 

60. 
The Kah-kahbeka Falls. 

(1.) River-banks. 

(2.) Distance from the river's mouth. 

(3.) Height. 

(4.) Breadth. 

(5.) Description. 

(6.) Causes of peculiarities. 

(7.) Name. 

b. (1.) At the foot of the Kah-kahbeka Falls,* the left bank of 

.s. 

* I allude to this cascade in VII. 1 (p. 55). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 289 

the Kahministikwoya * is 160 £ high, more than 100 f. of which 60. 
are perpendicular. f On the right bank, the 'portage '-path, 
which is }-m. long, "winds round the steep of a bold project- 
ing escarpment, 91 f. in altitude, and nearly ^ m. from the falls."} 

(2.) The distance of this cascade from the mouth of the Kah- JJomSS 
ministikwoya is about 30 m. by the canoe-route [a. n. 46], South. 
which follows the windings of the river; while it is 17m. ' as 
the crow flies.' § 

(3.) In August, 1857, Mr. Dawson, the surveyor of the Red height 
River exploring-expedition, ascertained, by levelling, that its 
altitude was 119-05 f. || (E. R, p. 204.) 

(4.) Its breadth "is about 150 yards" (C. p. 85). bkeadth, 

(5.) " The stream comes foaming over a shallow bed, thrown 5 E cS KIF " 
up in jets of spray, like the rapids at Niagara " (ib.). It is then 
"compressed" (ib.), and "precipitates its yellowish-brown " ^j 
waters over a sharp ledge into a narrow and profound gorge " 
(Hi. ib.). "Where the descending sheet is less broken" than 
elsewhere, " the rich umber colour ^f of the stream " [ib.'] " tinges 
the foam half-way down" (C. ib.). "About the middle of the 
descent, a beautiful rainbow, at the time of" Sir George Simp- 



* a. n. 46, (1.), A. 

t R. R. p. 203; Hi. vol. i. p. 36. 

t R. R. ib. 

§ A trip to it from Fort William has been made in the course of one day. 
In the summer of 1859, a party, in a canoe paddled by seven * Indians,' 
started at 1 a.m., and returned at 7 p.m. They accomplished but 2 m. in the 
hour in the ascent of the rapids ; but in their way back the " canoe, with 
scarcely any effort of the crew, dashed down the current at the rate of 8 or 9 
m. an hour." 

t| Former estimates ranged from 115 f. to 130 f. Indeed, the height has 
been stated by travellers to exceed that of the Niagara Falls (Simp, and 
Bal.), of which the •American* is 163 f. high, and the Canadian 154 f. 
However, it has heen diminished, both above and below, by the fall and 
accumulation of fragments of rock. 

% See a. n. 46 (p. 247). 

U 



290 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

60. son's " visit, spanned the churning water, contrasting sweetly, 
at once, with the white foam, the green woods, and the sombre 
rocks " (Simp.). The cascade consists of " two horseshoe-shaped 
falls, divided in the middle by a perpendicular chimney -like 
mass of rock some feet square, the upper part of which has 
been partly turned round on its base. 

The distinguishing feature of these falls is variety. In the 
first place, each of the two side-falls has worn out for itself a 
deep semicircular chasm, which, with the fact of the cliff pro- 
jecting from below, gives the appearance of two horseshoes 
joining in the middle, as if two separate streams had happened 
to come together here. This peculiar conformation throws the 
masses of water together in the middle, where they are thrown 
up again by the resulting force, as if shot out by a cannon. The 
turmoil is farther increased by projecting rocks (perhaps piles of 
fragments from above), which, on the right particularly, shoot 
the water inwards towards the centre, at right angles with the 
course of the river. Then the sharp shelves, which project, 
especially on the right side, through the falling sheet, cause a 
succession of little falls in the face of the great one.* 
causes (6.) All these peculiarities are due, no doubt, to the nature of 

liari- " "the 'rock,'" which "is of clay-slate, f dipping two or three 

TIES. 

degrees southward, that is, from the " cascade, " and not being 
underlain by softer strata, as at Niagara." Hence " its reces- 
sion is not regular, but depends on the accidental dislodgement 
of blocks on the edge, by frost, collision of ice, &c., and the 
blocks again, when fallen, are not so readily decomposed or 
removed. Hence also the shallowness of the channel below." 
(C. ib.) 

* Mr. Hind (Hi.) gives a chromoxylographic view of the falls, and Mr. 
Cabot (C.) a lithographic., 
t See a. n. 4G (p. 254). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 2 9 1 



(7.) Mr. Cabot (C. ib.) says the name* "was explained by 60. 



Name. 



some of the men to mean ' straight down,' i. e. falls par excel- 
lence, it being the most considerable waterfall in this region." 
The name ' straight down ' would well distinguish this cascade 
from the Falls of Little Dog Kiver,f which would seem, from 
Mr. Hind's view of them, to be a series of sloping cataracts. 
Mr. Hind (Hi. ib.) says that the word means ' cleft rock.' 



61. 

The Fairies of Lake Superior. 

(1.) Their name. 

A. Orthography. 

B. Meaning. 

a. ' Puk.' 

b. < Wudj. 1 

c. i Ininees.' 

(2.) The superstitions about them. 

A. Accounts. 

a. Dr. Schoolcraft's. 

b. Herr Kohl's. 

B. Origin. 

(1.) A. Dr. Schoolcraft (Sch. H. L. p. 299) — in a tale, which is name. 
the basis of my "story," entitled iUeltnafc) aixU tf)0 Pufc* ™phy. 
fcOtttfjtnrfc^ (IX.) — writes their name * Pukwudjinees ' and 
' Pukwudjees.' In the vocabulary of The Song of Hiawatha it 
is written 'Puk-Wudjees ' and ' Puk-Wudg-Ininees.' The latter 
of these two forms is, I apprehend, the correct one of the name 
in full. 

* I have found it written " Kah-kahbeka " (C), "Ka-ka-beka" (Hi.), and 
"Kackabecka" (Bal.). I have followed Mr. Cabot. He does not differ 
from Mr. Hind, and in this case, as well as in others, he carefully marks the 
pronunciation. 

t See a. n. 46 (p. 251). 

U 2 



292 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



61. 

Meaning. 



' Wudj.' 



B. a. In this vocabulary' 55 ' the word is said to mean 'little 
wild men of the woods,' or ' pigmies.' If the former of these 
two interpretations is to be considered a literal one, I find, upon 
analysis, that ' wild ' must be a translation of 'pu/c.' If this be 
the meaning of l pukf that word appears very appropriately in 
the compound Pau-Puk-Keewis, which is the name of that wild 
character, who plays a prominent part in The Song of Hiawatha 
(H. xi., xvi.).f It reminds one of Shakespeare's " Puck" and of 
the German word spuJc or spuck, all of which are probably 
derived from the German pochen. 

b. But 'wudj 1 (or 'wudg') means 'mountains,' not 'woods.' 
In a vocabulary of the dialect of the Ojibwas of Saut Ste. 
Marie, Dr. Schoolcraft (Sch. I.) gives wudjoo as an equiva- 
lent for ' mountains.' Wudchue, a, cognate form, J is the ren- 
dering of ' mountains ' in Eliot's translation of The Book of 
Job (xxxix. 8), among the other Scriptures, into the tongue of 
the Massachusetts ' Indians.' § And this interpretation is cor- 
roborated by the fact that " the Pukwudjinees " " had one of 
their most noted places of residence at the great sand-dunes " 
[a. n. 62] of Lake Superior (Sch. H. L. ib.). 

c. "With regard to the rest of the compound, inine is = ' a 
man,' and ininees is = 'a little man.' ees being one of the 
suffixes ||, which, in the Ojibwa tongue, denote a diminutive 
form (Sch. L, part L, p. 380). 

* I have already [a. n. 39 (2.), A.] said that Dr. Schoolcraft's writings are 
Mr. Longfellow's chief authorities. 

t Some of his doings are mentioned in a. n. 39 (5.), B. b.> and in a. n. 62 
(3.), B. 

t See a. n. 48 (1.), A. a. oc. 

§ This translation (El.) was published in 1661, 1663, 1685. Its author, who 
has been called 'the Apostle of the ' Indians,' ' had spent thirty years among 
them as a Christian missionary, having left England in 1631. From it Dr. 
Schoolcraft (Sch. I., part i., p. 284) gets a valuable vocabulary. 

|| There are four of these suffixes,— viz. -ays, -ees, -os, and -aus (Sch. ib.). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 293 

(2.) A. a. "The Pukwudjinees, or fairies of Lake Superior" 61. 
— as Dr. Schoolcraft (Sch. H. L. ib.) terms them — play a part nows. 
in Mr. Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha, killing with pine-cones D ^° M " 
Kwasind, the strong man, after he has been stupefied by the craft'V 
war-clubs of the host of Nepahwin, the Spirit of Sleep (H. 
xviii.). I suspect, too, that the pretty legend, which appears 
in that poem under the title of The Son of the Evening Star 
(H. xii.), may have sprung from an attempt to account for their 
origin. The "Little People," with whom that legend ends its 
metamorphoses, can scarce be other than 

— " the pigmies, the Puk- Wudjies," 

whom they are said to resemble. Indeed, what Mr. 
Longfellow says of their dances and " happy voices " would 
seem to be taken from that account of the doings of " the Puk- 
wudjinees, or fairies of Lake Superior," which Dr. Schoolcraft 
gives in the little book just referred to (Sch. EL L. ib.). 

b. The same imaginary beings are thus spoken of by Herr Herr 

Kohl's. 

Kohl (K p. 365): — 

" The ' Indian ' fancy, like that of the Scandinavians and other 
nations, created a dwarf-like race by the side of the cannibal 
giants. They believe that these pigmies, though not visible to 
all, still really exist; and they populate all the forests with 
them. It seems, too, as if these ' Indian ' pigmies had even 
guns ; for many a time I was told that a hunter, in walking 
through the forest, had heard a little snapping shot, only ex- 
plicable by the fact that a hunting pigmy had just passed close 
by him. These dwarfs, too, have delicate little canoes like the 
' Indians,' and glide over the lakes and rivers. Some ' Indians ' 
have so sharp a sight, that they can distinctly see them moving 
The first of these appears in * Minnis-ays,' = ■ little island ' [see a. n. 76 (2.), 
C. b. «.]. 

u 3 



294 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



61. along in the reeds and" in the "narrow channels between the 
broad leaves of the water-plants." 
origin. B. Perhaps the superstitions about the Puk-Wudj-Ininees — 

who are probably no other than ' the Little Spirits ' * — may be, 
in a great measure, attributed to the phenomena of the mirage 
[a. n. 66], the marvels of which would be considerably exag- 
gerated by the lively imagination of the Ked Man. 



62. 



Names. 
Ojibwa. 



The great Sand-dunes of Lake Superior. 

(1.) Names. 

A. Ojibwa. 

B. Franco-Canadian. 
(2.) Description. 

(3.) Superstitions about them. 

A. About their fairies. 

B. About their origin. 

(1.) A. The Ojibwa name of these sand-dunes is ISaygow 
Wudjoof (' sand hills '). 

B. The Franco- Canadian is Le Grand Sable. 

(2.) "'The Grand Sable' possesses a scenic interest little 
inferior to that of ' the Pictured Kocks.' J The explorer passes 
abruptly from a coast of consolidated sand to one of loose 
materials," but of greater altitude. "He sees before him a 
long reach of coast, resembling a vast . sand-bank, more than 
350 f. in height, without a trace of vegetation. Ascending to 
the top," he observes "rounded hillocks of blown sand, § with 



* a. n. 81 ; a. n. 72 (1.), B. b ; a. n. 36 (2.), B. 
t See a. n. 61 (1.), B. b. 
X a. n. 32. 

§ Dr. Schoolcraft (Sch. i., part i. p. 168) says that "these elevations are 
found to rest on beds of clay; loam, and gravel, of compact structure, and to 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 295 

occasional clumps of trees, like oases in the desert." (F. and 62. 
W. part ii. p. 131.) 

(3.) A. These sand-dunes are supposed to be a favourite supbb- 

STITIOKS. 

haunt of the Pukwudjinees (Sch. H. L. p. 299). "There was Abna&eir 

fairies. 

a group of pines in that vicinity — one of the " clumps just 
mentioned — "called the Mahnitoo-Wac,* or Spirit -Wood, into 
which they might be seen to flee on the approach of evening : 
and there is a romantic little lake on those elevated sand-hills, 
— not far back from the Great Lake, — on the shores of which 
their tracks could be plainly seen in the sand " (ib.).f 

B. A legend about the origin of these sand-dunes appears AUut 
in 31r. Longfellow's poem. Pau-Puk-Keewis { is there (H. xi.) 9™. 
described, as creating them, 

" When, among the guests assembled, 
He so merrily and madly 
Danced at Hiawatha's wedding." (H. xvi.) 



63. 
The yellow Violets of Canada and the Classics. 

(1.) That of Canada. 
(2.) That of the classics. 

(1.) The yellow violet, which I have introduced (in IX. 8) as that or 

Cakada. 
one of the flowers in Leelinaw's wreath, is the ' downy yellow 

violet ' ( Viola pubescens). 

be only buried beneath a coating, or upper stratum, of loose yellow sand, 
which has been manifestly washed up by the waves, and driven landward by 
the winds." 

* A town on the western coast of Lake Michigan is so named. 

t This passage is at the beginning of that tale which is the basis of my 
account (in IX.) of the " Pukwudjinees," and of their luring away a beautiful 
Ojibwa maiden. The " story " is placed where it is, a propos of " the forest 
primaeval" (Mr. Longfellow's Evangeline) and the approach of evening. 

? See a. n. 39 (5.), B. £., and a. n. 61 (1.), B. a. 
v 4 



296 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



63. 
That of 
the 

Classics. 



(2.) That of Cicero and Pliny, of Theocritus, Virgil, Horace,* 
and Ovid, is the * twofl owered violet ' ( Viola biflora), which 
inhabits the Alps, Southern Europe, and Siberia. 



64. 

The Pigeon Eiveb Route 
from Lake Superior to the Red River Settlement. 



Within 
ihe La a- 
rentian 
basin. 



00 



(2.) 
(3.) 



Description. 

A. ; Within the Lauren tian basin. 

B. Beyond the Laurentian basin. 
Advantages. 

When used. 



(1.) A. Pigeon River f is the first link in this route. Within 
the Laurentian basin, the streams and lakes are shallow, and 
the 'portages' are long, rugged, and hilly, consisting, in the 
aggregate, of about 16 m. of land-carriage. \ Four of the seven- 
teen 'portages' are avoided by what is called the Grand Portage. 
This is a road, about 8| m. long, from Grand Portage Bay, § 
the site of a small settlement, to a point on Pigeon River, 1 m. 
above the great cascade. Here stood " Port Charlotte, for many 

* Followed by Petrarch (Son, i. 186). 

t There is a bar at the mouth, with 9 f. of water over it (Bay.). The river 
runs through a deep gorge from 15 to 20 f. in width. At a distance of 1£ m. 
from the mouth, the first fall occurs. Here the river, 75 f. wide, makes a 
perpendicular descent of 60 f. Above this point, it flows between slate hills, 
several rapids occurring § m. from the great cascade, and a small cataract 
£ m. further. About 1§ m. beyond, a perpendicular fall of 19 f. is caused 
by a dyke of greenstone, bearing east and west. Then comes a rapid, which 
produces a fall of 11 f. in a distance of 120 f., the stream here rushing between 
hills 300 or 400 f. high. This part of the country is timbered with poplar, 
spruce, and birch. Above these falls and rapids, the river exhibits nothing 
worthy of note. (R. R. p. 193.) 

X Mr. Gladman, R. R. (p. 70). 

§ X. 4. Here Captain Kennedy [see III. f. n. a] landed with the first Red 
River mail, bought a canoe,, and started. 



basin. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 297 

years the most important post of the North- West Fur Com- 64. 
pany " * (E. E. p. 193). The ridge, which sends down waters to 
Hudson's Bay as well as the Grulf of St. Lawrence, is short and 
steep. 

B. Within a short distance of the other side of the ridge, Beyond 
there are numerous picturesque falls. Beyond, Mr. Grladman rentian 
" found the whole line of communication to be very good indeed, 
being a succession of small lakes connected by small streams 
and sixteen short 'portages, 1 all" of which might be "easily 
improved, and which, in the aggregate, do not occasion, much 
more than 2 m. of land-carriage." 

(2.) The Pigeon Eiver route, — which unites with the Kah- 
ministikwoya route [a. n. 46] some 20 m. east of Eainy Lake, f — 
not only has the advantage of being the shorter of the two, { 
but the lakes and streams through which it passes, beyond the 
Laurentian basin, have a greater body and depth of water. § 

(3.) This route was used by the North- West Company || 

* See a. n. 47 (1), B. (especially c). 

t The circuitous canoe-route, from the eastern shores of Rainy Lake to 
Fort Garry (Red River), is about 430 m. long. It passes through some very 
fine scenery, especially in the descent of Winnipeg River. (For particulars 
see R. R. (especially Mr. Hind's report), or Hi. vol. i.) 

% Mr. Hind is inconsistent in his statements, with regard to (1.) the length 
of the Kahministikwoya route, and (2.) the comparative shortness of the 
Pigeon, River route. 

(1.) In the introduction to his report (R. R. p. 145) he gives 669 m. as the 
length of the Kahministikwoya route, while the statements about parts of it, 
which occur in the course of his report, make it about 692± m. 

(2.) He represents the Pigeon River route as the shorter, now (ib. p. 238) 
by 41 m., now (ib. p. 195) by 43 m., and now (Hi. vol. i. p. 94) by 56 m. I 
suppose this last statement is the correct one, as it appears in the work that 
is, virtually, a revised and enlarged edition^of his ' reports' of the Red River 
and Saskatchewan expeditions. 

Mr. Gladman (R. R. p. 70) reached Lake Superior by the Pigeon River 
route about seven days and a half after he left the point at which it diverges 
from the Kahministikwoya route. 

§ R. R. p. 194. 

|| See a. n. 47 (1), B. (especially &.). 



298 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

64. down to the year 1803, when the Kahministikwoya route was 
adopted. 

65. 
The Keweena Peninsula. 

(1.) Its name. 
(2.) Its formation. 

E . (1.) A. Ke-weena (K. p. 175) is an abbreviation of an 

'Indian' word variously spelt in books and maps. Messrs. 
Foster and Whitney (F. and W.) say that this word was pro- 
nounced by their 'Indians/ Ki-wi-wai-non-ing, and means 'a 
portage ,' or ' a place where a portage is made.' According to 
Herr Kohl (K. p. 176) the word should be written KaMweonan, 
and is derived from nin Jcakiwe, = ' I march across a country.' 

This name of the peninsula originates from the chain of 
waters by which "the tedious and dangerous navigation round" 
the peninsula is avoided (K. ib.) and some 80 or 90 m. are 
saved (F. and TV.). 

«a- (2.) This peninsula ends in an abrupt headland that rises 

800 f. above Lake Superior. Its backbone consists of a range of 
trappean hills, which intersect the sandstone. They are nowhere 
more than 12 m. wide or 900 f. high. The Keweena peninsula 
is the most prominent of that series of corresponding projections 
in the northern and southern shores of Lake Superior, which 
are, as it were, gigantic landmarks of the geological history of 
the lake. Professor Agassiz {Lake Superior*) gives a map, 
especially illustrating this characteristic of a body of water, 
that is, in so many respects, the most interesting of all on our 
globe.f 

* See the Table of Abbreviations, under the heading " Ag." 
t See a. n. 78. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 299 

66. 

The Mirage. 

(1.) Its cause. 

(2.) Its Ojibwa name. 

(3.) Instances of it. 

( 1. ) The phenomenon called mirage is caused by the difference cause. 
between the temperature of the air and that of the water.* 

(2.) The Ojibwas call it ombanitewin, = 'something that ojibwa 
rises and swells in the air,' while ombanite is = ' there is a 
mirage around.' f 

(3.) It is commoner on the Lauren tian lakes than on the lN - 

v ' STANCES. 

Atlantic coast, scarce a summer-day passing without it.* Thus 
Messrs. Foster and Whitney saw in the sky an inverted image 
of a height in the centre of the Ke-weena peninsula, long before 
that height was visible, Again, the singular pair of heights \ 
between Black Bay and the main expanse of Lake Superior 
"would at one time appear like hour-glasses, and at another 
like craters, belching forth long columns of smoke, which 
gradually settled around their cones. Thunder Cape assumed 
shapes equally grotesque, — at one time resembling a huge 
anvil, with its handle projecting over the lake, at another 
appearing as though traversed from summit to base by an 
immense fissure."* Herr Kohl,f when he had crossed the Ke- 
weena peninsula [a. n. 65], and was making for L'Anse, saw " a 
tall bluish island, with which the mirage played in an infinity 
of ways. ... At times" it "rose in the air to a spectral 

* F. and W., part i., p. 55. 

t K. p. 188. 

I V. 4 ; a. n. 39 (5.), A., a. 



300 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

66 height, then " it " sank again and faded away ; while at another 
moment " he " saw islands hovering oyer one another in the air." 
" The refractions, which sometimes take place in summer" on 
Lake Ontario, " are exceedingly beautiful. Islands and trees 
appear turned upside down ; and the white surf of the beach, 
translated aloft, seems like the smoke of artillery blazing away 
from a fort." * A particularly fine one was seen in August, 1856, 
from the deck of a steamer which was going from Niagara to 
G-ennesee Eiver. It occurred just as the sun was setting. The 
sky was overcast with such a thick haze as precedes a storm ; 
and the inverted images of twelve vessels — with the full out- 
lines of the rigging, as well as the sails and other parts — were 
most distinctly visible on the darkened background^ 

The first mirage we saw occurred, when, after entering Lake 
Superior, we approached Whitefish Point [a. n. 30 (4.)]. A 
blue coast stretched along the horizon in front of us. Surprised, 
I referred to Bayfield's accurate chart (Bay.), and found, as I 
expected, no land so near in that direction. The pilot told me 
it was mirage. Probably it was a refraction of Le Grand Sable 
[a. n. 62]. Another \ — exhibiting, probably, refractions of the 
lofty heights of St. Ignace Island [a. n. 38] and the neighbour- 
ing coast — occurred, when the dense fog, that long enveloped 
us [a. n. 37], was clearing off, and we were making for Thunder 
Bay. A third § — presenting very striking imagery — occurred 
on our way from Grand Portage Bay to Saut Ste. Marie. 

* D. p. 220. 

t The substance of an account given in the Lockport (N.Y.) Journal, and 
quoted by D. (ib.). 
% See V. 13 (end). 
§ See X. 6. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 301 

67. 
Baggatiway. 

(1.) The ball. 
(2.) The racquet. 
(3.) The game. 

A. Description. 

B. Similarity to hockey. 

C. Estimation. 

D. Names. 

a, Ojibwa. 

b. Franco-Canadian. 

(I.) The ball is made of white willow, cut quite round with the 
the hand, and decorated with carvings of crosses, stars, and 
circles. 

Sometimes it is made of baked clay, covered with raw deer- 
hide. 

(2.) The racquet is from 2§ to 4 f. long. It is carved out of the 

Racque t . 

a white tough wood, and one end is bent into a ring some 4 or 5 
inches in diameter. In this ring there is a network, made of 
raw hide or sinews of the deer or the buffalo. 

(3.) A. The game is played by two opposite parties. It is a the 
common thing for the men of one village to play against those 
of another. Two stakes are placed at some distance apart, and tionm 
the game begins midway between them, the object of each 
party being to drive the ball beyond the stake in the rear of the 
other party. The game commences by one of the old men 
throwing the ball into the air, every player endeavouring to 
catch it on his racquet and drive it in the desired direction.* 

* The foregoing is compiled chiefly from Sch. I. (part ii., pp. 78, 79), and 
slightly from K. (pp. 88, 89). 

The game would seem to be introduced, under the name of "ball-play " 
(the only name in Sch. I. and in K.), by Mr. Longfellow (H. xi.), as one of 
those in which Pau-Puk-Keewis was skilled. 



302 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 



67. 

Similarity 
to hockey. 



Names.. 
Ojibwa. 
Franco- 
Cauadian. 



B. In fact, the game is just like the English game called 
'hockey,'* — with the exception of the Eed Man's refinement 
in the use of a racquet instead of a plain stick. 

C. " Great ball-players, who can send the ball so high that it 
is out of sight, attain the same renown among the ' Indians,' as 
celebrated runners, hunters, or warriors" (K. p. 89). 

D. a. The Ojibwa namef for it is baggatiway (He. j). 

b. The Franco- Canadian is le jeu de la crosse,§ on account, 
apparently, of the racquet with which it is played. 



68. 

The Eed Man's Kemoval 
from the Scene of his Bereavement. 

In the tale, which is the basis of Canto XI., Dr. Schoolcraft 
(H.'L. p. 265) says that the injured husband, after killing and 
burying the faithless squaw, " took down the lodge, and re- 
moved with his two sons, to a distant position." || 

Herr Kohl (K. p. 106) found this removal from the scene of 
bereavement customary among the Ojibwas of the southern 



I do not think I have erred in making little boys amuse themselves with a 
semblance of it [XI. i. (2.), (4.), (5.)], for I believe that the amusements 
of the children of the Red Man are, in miniature, those of adults. Dr. 
Schoolcraft (H.L. p. 265), in the tale which I paraphrase, says that they 
" usually diverted themselves within a short distance of the lodge." 

* The ' shinty ' of Scotland and ' hurley ' of Ireland. 

t In his 'report' (R. R. p. 231), Mr. Hind,— while speaking of the game, 
as being played by the Ojibwas of Rainy Lake,— leaves a blank for its name ; 
noj does he in his book give it in that place (Hi. vol. i. p. 83). 

J The game is associated with the capture of old Fort Mackinac by the 
Ojibwas in 1763. See a. n. 72 (8.), B. 

§ From this game having been often played there, a prairie on the Missi- 
sippi and a town on that site have got the name of ' Prairie de la Crosse.' 

|| See XI. i. (11.), (12.). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 303 

coast of Lake Superior. One morning he had visited a lodge ( 
that contained a dying child. " On the evening of the same 
day" he again passed, " but could not find the lodge." It " had 
been utterly removed." The child " was dead and already 
buried."* The "parents had broken up their lodge, and put 
out their fire, and gone to live temporarily with some relations." 
The following is appended by way of comment. The ' Indians ' 
"not only pull down the whole house and put out the fire, but 
are very careful not even to light the new fire in the new 
house with a spark or sticks from the old one. A new fire 
and new wood must be taken. Nor do they build the new 
lodge on the old spot, but choose another place as far from it 
as possible." 

I have ventured to make my ' Indians' of " the far north " f 
carry off " the central pole I " with them, as the prairie ' Indians' 
do at the present day. § I have done so on the ground that in 
those high latitudes there would be a scarcity of wood suitable 
for the main stay of the lodge. By the ' forest-men ' [| " the 



* The following, which Herr Kohl appends in a note, reminds one of the 
expression, twice used by Abraham in that conference between him and the 
children of Heth, which ends in his buying the cave of Machpelah. " Give 
me," says the patriarch, " a possession of a burying-place with you, that I 
may bury my dead out of my sight. ... If it be your mind that I should 
bury my dead out of my sight, hear me." . . . (Genesis; chap. 23 ; vv. 4, 8). 
M * Les Indiens craignent la mortalite,' my Canadians repeatedly said to me," 
writes Herr Kohl. " Hence they bury their deceased as soon as possible. 
They fear lest the dead person, by remaining any time among them, might 
carry of other living beings." 

In that tale, which I paraphrase in Canto XI, Dr. Schoolcraft (ib.) writes : 
— u He then buried her under the ashes of his fire, took down the lodge," &c. 
This does not tally with the custom observed by Herr Kohl (t'b.). He says : 
** They do not carry thein out of the doorway, but cut a hole in the bark of 
the lodge and thrust the body out." 

+ XL i. (1 .) 

% XI. i. (12.), and V Envoi (p. 112). 

§ K. pp. 10, 337, 338. 

|| By the Ojibwas of the southern coast of Lake Superior, 'the lands to 



304 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

68 poles and skeleton are left standing."* All the 'Indians' 
''remove the valuable cords f and apakwas,\ and carefully roll § 
them up." * 

69. 
The word ' Neepigon.' 

(1.) Spelling. 

(2.) Meaning and composition, 

A. Various authorities. 

B. Remarks. 

a. The components of the word. 

a. ' Neepi. y 
j3. l Gon: 

b. The whole word. 
(3.) Proper application. 

spel- (1.) This word is spelt ' Neepigon' by Messrs. Foster and 

LING - Whitney, || Mr. Cabot, f and Mr. Hind,** ' Nipegon' by Dr. 
Schoolcraft ff and in the map to the Keport of the Ked River 
Expedition, J{ and ' Neepeegon ' by Mr. Cabot in another place. §§ 
He seems to adopt this spelling in order to corroborate the 
derivation he would assign to the word. 
meaning (2-) A. Messrs. Foster and Whitney [| || write: — " Neepi or 

and Com- .... , , . . -,. , , , ,, 

position, nipi is water ; neeptgon, 'dirty water. 

the west, near the sources of the Missi-sippi, are usually calied l les bois 
forts. 1 The name is the same in ' Indian,' and the ' Indian ' name of the tribes 
living there may be translated ' forest-men.' " (K. p. 118.) 

* K. p. 10. 

t VIII. 2. (p. 70) ; XI. i. 12, and V Envoi (p. 112); a. n. 52. 

% VIII. 2. (p. 71); a. n. 27, f. n. 

§ XI.i.(12.). 

II F. and W., pt. ii. p. 398. 

If C, p. 99. 

** R. R., p. 197. 

ft Sch. I., pt. iii., p. 524. 

XX R. R., end. 

§§ C.p.71.. 

II II lb. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 305 



According to Mr. Cabot, * " Neepigon is said to signify ' dirty 69. 

& * ° MEANING 

water.'" In a previous passage,! — where he is speaking of^cgj*- 
Pic House, "the smallest of the three" posts of the Hudson's ISorL 
Bay Company on Lake Superior,! — he says: — "the name is 
derived from an 'Indian' word peek% or neepeek, signifying, I 
believe, ' dirty water.' The same word occurs in Neepeegon. It 
is situated near the mouth of a rather sluggish stream of turbid 
brown water, || about 250 yards broad, flowing through a valley, 
wide near its mouth, and narrowing higher up, — apparently a 
delta of the river." 

Mr. Hind^f writes : — " Neepigon — ' dirty water.' " 
To Dr. Schoolcraft** " Nipegon appears to contain the roots 
nibee ( — ' water ') and gan ( = ' lake ')." 

B. a. It seems clear that the word consists of two parts, Remarks. 

Compo- 

represented by i neepi ' and ' gon. i *? z nts '■> 

a. With regard to ' neepi,' — Eliot (EL), in the seventeenth'^^',' 
century, rendered ' water ' by nippe (pronounced, I apprehend, 



Mr. Cabot, in the passage just quoted, speaks of a word peek 
or neepeek signifying ' dirty water.' 

Dr. Schoolcraft, ft in his Algonquin vocabularies, presents in 

* C, p. 99. 

t C, p. 71. 

% See a. n. 47 [pp. 262, 263]. 

§ This word appears, it would seem, in ' Missipzcooatong ' or * Michipjc- 
oten,' the name of a river, bay, and island on the north-east side of Lakp 
Superior. 

See a n. 35 (I). I take the opportunity of here adding that I find Messrs. 
Foster and Whitney (F. and W., pt. ii., p. 398) saying that the name ( =' great 
sand ') properly applies to " the river." ' Missi-pic' or 'Michi-pic ' is, doubt- 
less, = * great sand.' In the rest of the word one may discern the Algonquin 
termination -ng, = ' in' or « at.' 

See a. n. 46 [p. 247]. 

f R. R. p. 197. 

** Sch. I. pt. iii. p. 524. 

tt H>; pt. ii., p. 458. The equivalents to ' water ' are in p. 462. 
X 



306 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

69, parallel tables the variations * found at four Ojibwa villages by 
different observers. It seems that neebi would represent the 
equivalent for ' water ' among the Ojibwas of Saut Ste. Marie, 
Grand Traverse Bay, f and Mackinaw, while neepeesh would 
represent that among those at the head of Saginaw} Bay 
(Lake Huron). In another place § he mentions neebish || as the 
adjective. 

Francis Assikenack ^| says that the English word ' water ' is 
represented in the Ojibwa dialect by nibe (to be pronounced, I 



* " In an unwritten language, dialects soon spring up. A life-time, the 
men said, was sufficient to make a noticeable change in their language'* 
[the Ojibwa]. (C, p. 48.) 

I am surprised to find so little difference between the tongue of the Ojibwas 
of the present day and that of the Massachusetts ' Indians ' of the beginning of 
the 17th century, which is embalmed in Eliot's translation of the Scriptures 
(EL). 

t A deep indentation in the eastern coast of Lake Michigan, opposite to 
the Mahnitoo Islands. 

% I ventured a guess at the derivation of this word in a foot-note to a. n. 33, 
(2.), B, b [p. 211]. 

Finding now that the name of Saginaw Bay is written by Henry (He.) 
" Saguenaum," and by Charlevoix (Ch.) — who was in this region twenty 
\ ears previously — " Saguinam," I think it probable that we have in this 
word merely another shape of the present equivalent to ' lake' in the Ojibwa 
tongue. From that comparative vocabulary, which has just been mentioned, 
it seems that sakgiegan, sahgtegum, and saugiegun are forms, respec- 
tively, in use among the Ojibwas of Saut Ste. Marie, Grand Traverse Bay, 
and Mackinaw. It appears strange that keetchi-gahma (which is = ' great 
lake ' : see a. n. 33) should be given as the form among the Ojibwas of 
Saginaw. One would rather expect it to be that among those of Saut Ste. 
Marie, knowing it to be the Ojibwa name of Lake Superior [see a. n. 33]. 

It is now clear to me that the word ' Missisawgaiegon,' which I attempted, 
in the same place, to unravel before I had perused these authorities, is equi- 
valent to ' Great Lake.' 

However, I think it not unlikely that the word, which appears in the 
varieties sahgzegan, &c, is connected with sakging, as I conjectured. 

§ 76., p. 383. 

|] So are named some rapids and an adjacent island, which are in the lowei| 
part of St. Mary's River. See a. n. 26, (2.), B. 

f Assik. iii. . 



APFENDIX-NOTES. 307 

apprehend,* nibbi) and in the Odahwa dialect by nibeesh. I 69. 
apprehend that nibis; which he affirms to be, in this (his native) 
dialect, equivalent to a ' small lake,' f is merely the shape that 
nibeesh gets in composition, and that the word is used just as the 
English word 'water' is in 'Derwent- water' and ' Wast- water.' 

j8. In the -gon, which terminates the word ' Neepigon\ Dr. ■ gon. 
Schoolcraft sees, as has been said, " the root gan, = ' lake,' " 
which, as I have already remarked, appears in the word 
' Michigan? \ 

In proposing a system of local nomenclature for the United 
States, to be framed from Algonquin roots, he would have ' gon ' 
stand for ' clay-land,' while ' gan ' would represent * lake.' § 

It should, perhaps, be also mentioned that, according to the 
comparative vocabulary already referred to, gan is == ' snow ' 
among the Ojibwas of Grand Traverse Bay, kohn being the 
form among those of Saut Ste. Marie and Mackinaw, and awkohn 
that among those of Saginaw. || 



* He writes as sebe the word (= 'river') pronounced seebi. [See a. n. 
26,(1.)-] 

t From this "nibis" (= 'a small lake') and ng (a termination = 'in'or 
'at') he derives " Nibissing" as, according to him, should be written the 
name of the lake between the River Ottawa (properly, according to Assike- 
nack, Odahwa) and Lake Huron, in preference to Nipissing, the spelling in 
(e.g.) the Geological Reports. The spelling in the first mention of the lake 
— the Relation of 1640 (Jes.) — " Nipisin.^ That of Dr. Schoolcraft (Sch. 
I., pt. iii.,p. 358) is " Nepising." It seems to be likely that the appearance 
of the letter ' p ' in this word is not so much owing to an error on the part of 
the Jesuits and others as to the word having come to us from Ojibwa lips. 
The Ojibwas of Saginaw use neepeesh for ' water,' while the Odahwas use 
nibeesh. So we find the forms seepi and seebi (= 'river'). [See a. n. 26, 

(l.).J 

Before I read Assikenack's paper I wrote, for the map, ' Neepising' from the 
analogy of ' Neeprgon.'' I see no ground for altering this. He gives no reason 
for doubling the ' 5.' 

X See a. n. 33 [p. 212], 80 (where the word is traced back). 

§ Sch. I. ; pt. iii. ; pp. 504, 505. 

II lb. ; pt. ii. ; p. 462. 

x2 



308 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

69. b. Messrs. Foster and "Whitney seem to consider -gon to re- 
whoie present ' dirt.' But it seems to me probable that, if so, the 
compound would have been gon-neepi, not neepi-gon. 

The same objection would stand in the way of our supposing 
that -gan or kohn, = ' snow,' enters into the composition of the 
word. 

I am inclined to think that Mr. Cabot and Dr. Schoolcraft, — 
though the former passes over -gon altogether, and the interpre- 
tation of the latter seems tautological, — are nearer the mark. 
It seems to me not impossible that Mr. Cabot's word neepeek 
(= ' dirty water '), — which is so like neepeesh, the equivalent 
to ' water ' among the Ojibwas of Saginaw, — is merely another 
local variety of the same word, and that there would really be 
no tautology in the combination of that word, which would be 
commonly used of the dark and turbid * water of the rivers, 
with one confined to the clear lake. NeepeeJc-gon would then be 
= 'lake of dirty water,' — to transpose the components. There 
is no need, however, of supposing that ' Jc ' ever formed part of 
the word here = * dirty water,' the word being found in so 
many shapes. But, even if it did, it would have disappeared in 
composition. 
proper (3.) Messrs. Foster and Whitney, as well as Mr. Cabot, do 
Tiojf. " not refer at all to the lake called ' Neepigon? but to the bay of 
that name, the latter observing that " it certainly deserved its 
name, being exceedingly turbid, and strongly in contrast with " 
his experience of the other parts of Lake Superior." f 

It seems to me more likely that the name originally belonged 
to the lake, and was extended from the lake to the river which 



* See a. n. 46 [p. 247]. 
1 C, p. 99. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 309 

flows from it into Lake Superior, and then to the bay of the 69. 
latter in which this river terminates.' 51 ' 

But, to judge from Mr. Cabot's personal observation, it seems 
that the bay would have a good claim to the name on its own 
account. So, perhaps, the name may apply to both lake and 
bay, independently of each other. 



70. 
The Ojibwa Story of the First Man and his Squaw. 

Herr Kohl (K. chap. 13) was told by a very aged Ojibwa a 
story of the first man and his squaw, which evidently originated, 
to a great extent, in the teaching of the Christian missionaries, 
though it owes much to the fertile imagination of the Eed Man. 

The narrator lays the scene, naturally enough, at his native 
locality — a lake at some little distance south of Lake Superior, 
and bearing the common name of Lac Flambeau. f 

Man is the latest-born of our world's inhabitants. Keetchi 
Mahnitoo j: — who is throughout represented rather as developer 
than as creator — walking along the sandy shore, sees " a being 
coming out of the water." It is " entirely covered with silver- 
glistening scales like a fish, but otherwise formed like a man." 
This is the first man. Keetchi Mahnitoo, observing that this 
being sighs and groans, provides him with the company of a 
squaw, also covering " her body with silver-glistening scales," like 



* I have introduced the lake, the bay, and the river in XI. iii. (2.) [p. 98]. 
The scenery of this region is said to be very wild and picturesque. 

t Probably this name, which is often found in that region, " was introduced 
by the discoverers on finding the Indians spearing fish by torchlight " [a. n. 
77]. (K. p. 175.) 

% = ' the Great (and Good) Spirit.' See a. n. 36, (2.), A., b. 
x 3 



310 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

70. his. The squaw finds the man, and tells him her name is Mani.* 
Keetchi Mahnitoo gives the pair "a handsome large house" 
and "a splendid garden." Pointing out one of the trees, he 
warns them not to eat of it, as Matchi Mahnitoo f has planted 
it, and, though its fruit will "look very fine and taste very 
sweet," they will die if they eat it. But Mani, walking in the 
garden, hears " a very friendly and sweet voice," asking her 
why she does not eat of this beautiful fruit and telling her it is 
delicious. She is afraid, and retires into the house. Next day, 
however, curiosity prompts her to approach the tree, so as to see 
whether that "pleasant voice" will speak to her again. A 
handsome young man comes out of the bushes, plucks one of 
the fruits, and places it in her hands, saying she can make an 
excellent preserve J of it. She eats it, and persuades her hus- 
band to do so. The silver scales fall off their bodies. Only 
twenty remain, " ten on the fingers, and ten on the toes : " but 
these have "lost their brilliancy." Ashamed, they hide them- 
selves in the bushes, soon to hear Keetchi Mahnitoo say to 
them : — " Ye have eaten of Matchi Mahnitoo' s fruit, and must 
now die."§ 



* ' Mani' is = ' Mary,' ■ n ' being substituted for * r,' which the Ojibwas do 
not possess in their language, and cannot pronounce (a. n. 20 ; p. 188 $ especially 
f. n.). The Virgin Mary is confounded with Eve. 

t = * the Evil Spirit.' See a. n. 36, pp. 220, 221. 

X See a. n. 23, 24. 

§ I have only given so much of the tale as will explain the allusions to it, 
which I put in the mouth of the misogynistic old man, who is supposed to tell 
the story of W$Z fatti)lBW glJUafcO atltf tf)Z gtzttty tXKTlt. 

The imagery in regard to Pauguk (= * Death '),— both in this instance 
[XI. iv. (15.)], and in that of the Red Man's superstition about Thunder 
Mountain [VI- 7],— was suggested by passages in The Song of Hiawatha (H. 
iv, ix, xx.)." 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 3 1 1 

71. 
The Totem. 

The totem is a device corresponding with, the armorial bearings 
of White Men. It is usually the figure of some animal. Some- 
times, however, it consists of parts of different animals, as, for 
instance, of the wing of a small hawk and the fins of a sturgeon.* 

In the large villages, f in which the Eed Men dwelt in olden 
times, those who bore the same totem had their distinct quarter, 
and set up this device on one of the posts of their gates. \ 

Those who bear the same totem are — at all events, are sup- 
posed to be — blood-relations. § On this ground, they are wisely 
forbidden to intermarry. || 

Hence the tie is considered to carry with it strong claims to 
mutual assistance. If a stranger presents himself at a distant 
lodge, his bearing the same totem as its occupier entitles him to 
a hearty welcome. If a man is killed, every one who bears his 
totem is bound to avenge his death. % 

Sometimes the totem carries with it hereditary privileges, such 
as that of furnishing the tribe with its sachem** ( = ' civil chief), 

* Assik. i. 

f There is an instance of these in L'Arbre Croche (in the Odahwa tongue 
Waganukizzi), a settlement of the tribe called Odahwas by Assikenack, one 
of the tribesmen. " It is the head-settlement of the Ottawa nation, and is 
divided into five villages." (Sch. I. pt< iii. p. 535.) See a.n. 48 (2.), B; 
72 (8.), B. 

% Assik. i. 

§ Sch. I.,pt. i., p. 420. 

J| P., chap. i. 

f lb. 

** I find the Jesuit Relations stating sagamo to be = 'chief among the in- 
habitants of the southern borders of the Gulf of St. Lawrence [a. n. 100] 
(Jes. ; i6ii, p. 11) and among some of the ' Montagnais* [a. n. 48 (2.), E] 
(Jes. ; 1632, p. 12 ; 1633, p. 8). Is not " Sahgima" [a. n. 15, p. 184] a variety 
of this word? 

x 4 



312 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

71. or that of performing certain religious ceremonies or magic rites 
[a. n. 75].* 

The totem serves for a surname. Among the Algonquins — 
at least, among the northern branches of that stock — this 
denomination descends in the male line ; while the reverse of 
this custom obtains among the Iroquois, not only among the 
Five Nations (or Iroquois proper), but also among the Wyandots 
(or Hurons) and probably among the Andastes and the Eries, 
extinct members of the Iroquois family.f Thus, if a Wolf 
warrior married a Hawk squaw, the children bore the name of 
Hawk.+ 

Assikenack § writes the word ohdohdam. Dr. Schoolcraft |] 
says that totem is derived from dokdaym, which is, he says, = 
' village.'^" I cannot but suspect that dokdaym properly means 
one of those sections of the village, which have been spoken of 
as exclusively inhabited by the bearers of the same totem. 

The Franco-Canadians speak of these devices as c les marques 
des totems? or, simply, ' les marques.' 1 ** 

Herr Kohl, ft on more than one occasion, observed "how 
proudly the ' Indians ' always talk of the totem to which they or 
their wives belong." \ \ 

* P., chap. i. 

t On all these tribes, see the Introduction. 

X P., chap. i. 

§ Assik. i. 

[| Sch. I. pt. i. p. 420. 

IT In the vocabulary already referred to, the equivalent for ' town ' (or 
' village ') is said to be dapnuh among the Ojibwas of Saut Ste. Marie, odanah 
among those of Grand Traverse Bay, odanugh among those of Mackinaw, 
and otaynung among those of Saginaw. (lb., pt. ii., p. 459.) 

** K., p. 149. 

-H lb.; pp. 148,149. 

XX "La marque des Grues" [XI. (p. 110)]— said a half-breed of LaPointe, 
whose mother and wife were Cranes [XI. (pp. 88,90, 109)] — "est la plus 
noble et la plus grande marque parmi les Ojibbeways. Les Grues montent 
jusqu'au Deluge. On trouve leurs noms deja* dans les livres des Romains. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 313 



Mackinaw. 

I.) Name. 

A. Modes of writing. 

B. Derivations. 
(2.) Dimensions. 
(3.) Description. 
(4.) Geology. 

A. Limestone. 

B. Drift. 

C. The removal of the drift from the lower country. 

a. Cause. 

b. Date. 

D. Trace? of the action of water on the limestone. 

a. ' The Sugar-Loaf.' 

b. Minor traces. 

c. ' The Arched Rock.' 

E. Terraces. 

a. Form, height, and site. 

b. Materials. 

c. Origin, and date. 

F. Beaches. 
(5.) Vegetation.* 

A. Trees. 

B. Fruits. 

C. Flowers. 
(6.) Scenery. 



. . Serieusement on a trouve deja a la destruction de la Tour de Eabei 
tous les noms qui sont a present parmi nous. . . . Les Grues ont pris pos- 
session de ces terres apres le Deluge. C'est bien connu. Pour des siecles les 
Grues avaient le nom le plus haut. lis sont ecrits dans les grands et les plus 
anciens livres. . . . Enfin, monsieur, les Grues ont ete et sont encore par- 
tout les hommes les plus remarquables du monde." Acknowledging that the 
Cranes had lost a little of their ancient grandeur, he said they were still to 
be found at La Pointe. Saut S:e. Marie [see XL f. n. i (p. 110)], the southern 
shore of Lake Superior, the neighbourhood of Detroit, and the coast of 
Hudson's Bay [see p. 216]. (lb.) 

Tradition tells of a war between the Ojibwas and the Menomonees (a 
people who lived west of St. Mary's River, their name being derived from the 
abundance of wild rice in that region [see a. n. SO]). In this war, one of the 
two leaders of the Ojibwas was the great chief at La Pointe, of the Crane 
totem. The other was the great chief of Neepigon, of the Kingfisher totem. 
(Sen. I., pt. i. 5 p. 304.) 



3 1 4 APPENDIX-NOTES. 



72. (?•) Fishery. 

(8.) Historical sketches. 

A. Marquette's mission. 

a. The foundation of it. 

b. The advantages of the site. 

B. The massacre of the English, and Henry's adventures. 

C. The Anglo-American wars. 
(9.) Harbour. 

(10.) Sail-boats. 
(11.) Village. 
(12.) Defences. 

A. Past. 

B. Present. 

C. Future. 

name. (1-) A. The name of this island is now commonly pronounced, 

writing, if not written, 'Mackinaw.' This word is a corruption of 
1 Mackinac,' * which, again, is an abbreviation. I find the 
word, in full, written by Dablonf 'Missilimakinac,' by Alloiiezj: 
' Michilimakinac.' by Marquette § ' Michilimakinong,' by Char- 
levoix || ' Michillimakinac,' and by Messrs. Foster and Whitney ^f 
'Michimackinac' Assikenack,** the Odahwa, writes 'Michinima- 
kinang ' ; and the appearance of ' 1 ' in the word is inconsistent 
with the fact, — mentioned by him,ff — that the Ojibwa and 
Odahwa dialects lack this fetter. 
Beriva- B. " Le nom de Michillimakinac signifie," says Charlevoix, J| 

tions. 

* In the original names of American localities, the sound ' ah ' has often 
been corrupted into * au ' or ' aw.' Hence the present forms ' Mackinaw,' 
' Sawgeen,' * Missi-sawga' [see pp. 184, 211, 212] ; and hence, I apprehend, 
the word that forms the last syllable of ' Mahnitoo-Wac' [see p. 295, and f. n.] 
is written * -wauk ' in Sch. I., and ' -woe ' in the present spelling of the name 
of the town. So, while travelling in America, I heard ' Chicago ' pronounced 
* Chicawgo,' and was reminded of my having heard ' Caen ' pronounced 
' Cawug ' by the English'at the tables d'hote of that city. 

t Jes. 1671. pp. 25, 36, 37, 39. 

% lb. p. 93. 

§ Jes. 167Z. 

II Ch. tom. iii. p. 314. 

1" F. and W.pVi. p. 21. 

** Assik. i. 

ft Assik. i. ii. See a. n. 20 (2.), A. 

%t Ch. tom. iii. p. 281. f. n. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 3 1 5 

" une grande quantite de tortues ; mais je n'ai pas oui dire qu'on 72. 
y en trouve aujourd'hui plus d'ailleurs." 

A modification of this etymology is given by more recent 
writers.* The word is said to mean 'great turtle,' and the 
island is said to be so called on account of " a fancied resemblance 
in its contour to"f that of a turtle. Mrs. Jameson J says the 
name is given, because "the whole island, when seen from a 
distance, has the form of a turtle sleeping on the water." If 
the word, in full, be written, — as Messrs. Foster and Whitney 
write it, — ' Michimackinac,' this derivation runs smoothly 
enough. Michi (pronounced mishi) is, as has been already § 
said, equivalent to ' great ' ; and Dr. Schoolcraft || gives me- 
Jce-nock^ as equivalent to 'turtle' among the Ojibwas 'of 
Mackinaw. 

Heriot relates a tradition that ' Michilimackinac' is derived 
from ' Imakinakos,' the name of some Spirits, who were left on 
the island by " Michipous, the chief of Spirits." ** 

Mrs. Jameson, f f after saying that the island is so called from 
its resemblance to a turtle, remarks that "the same name is 
given to a spirit of great power and might, — 'a spirit that 
never lies,' — whom the 'Indians' invoke and consult before 
undertaking any important or dangerous enterprise." She 
alludes to Henry's account of the invocation of the Great Turtle, 

* He. ; Ja. p. 190 ; P. p. 283 ; F. and W. ib. 

t F. and W. ib. 

X Ja. ib. 

§ p. 211. 

|| Sch. I. pt. ii. p. 465. 

If He gives me-ke-nok as the form among the Ojibwas of Grand Traverse 
Bay [see a. n. G9 (2.), B. a. oc], mik-e-nok as that among those of Saut Ste. 
Marie, and meshe-kan as that among those of Saginaw [a. n. 69 ib]. By the 
hyphens he marks the pronunciation of these words, not their composition. 

** In suppl. to a. n. 39 will be found this passage, and others that relate legends 
of this mythical being, with an attempt to trace the etymology of his name. 

tt Ja. ib. 



3 1 6 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. or the Chief Spirit, by the Ojibwas of Saut Ste. Marie.* " This 
island," — she adds, — "as I apprehend, has been peculiarly 
dedicated to him ; at all events, it has been, from time imme- 
morial, a place of note and sanctity among the ' Indians.' " 

Now in the cosmogony of the Iroquois f a turtle, " a floating 
mass on the dark deep," is " the original sustaining power and 
nucleus of matter ; " { and Catlin § found more than one shape 
of the same idea among the Mandans on the upper part of the 
Missouri. Is it not possible that the idea originated from the 
shape of Mackinaw, an island half-way between the seats of 
these peoples in historic times ? || Thus Charlevoix ^f says of the 
shape of a mountain on the northern side of Lake Neepising : — 
"c'est sans doute ce qui a donne lieu a faire tous ces contes" 
(that is, the stories about " Michabou ").** But, granting that 
the idea did not originate from the shape of Mackinaw, a people, 
that had such an idea, would naturally regard the island with 
superstitious veneration, and might well believe it to have been 
the birthplace and abode of " the Chief of Spirits." 

(2.) Mackinaw is some 2 or 3 m. in diameter. 

DlMEN- v ' 

desckip (**•) ^ S sna P e resembles that of a turtle. Landing on the 

TI0N ' southern side, one finds one's self on a narrow undercliff, that 

here slopes gently from a limestone- cliff, but becomes a strip of 

swampy ground, ft as one approaches the eastern of the two 

* This will be given in a. n. 75. 

t See Intr., and suppl. to a. n. 39. 

\ Sch. I. pt. iii. p. 527. 

\ Cat. vol. i. p. 181. 

|| Ch. torn. iii. p. 283. 

IT The Iroquois [see Intr.] make most conflicting statements with regard to 
their pre-historic seat. 

** These passages from the works of Dr. Schoolcraft, Catlin, and Charle- 
voix, will be given at large in the suppl. to a. n. 39. 

ft A spot, where 1 often bathed, toward the end of this swampy ground 
would be a very fit scene for the* circumstances of Canto XIII. ii, iii, iv. I 
had it in my * mind's eye ' when I composed that Canto. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 3 L 7 

headlands by which it is bounded. The southwestern side of 72. 
this headland is covered with trees. Above the limestone-cliff 
is a table-land, which is not a dead level, but relieved from 
uniformity by little elevations,* especially near the cliffs. It 
" may be some 150 or 250 f. above the "f water. Beyond. this is 
a height, which is the culminating part of the island, and 315 f.| 
above the water. On the northern side of this height, there is 
a long and gertle slope to the shore. § On the northwestern 
side of the island, there are overhanging cliffs of no great alti- 
tude. On the southeastern, there are cliffs 100 f. high, perpen- 
dicular or nearly so, and protected by ' talus ' and beach from 
the encroachments of the water, f 

(4. ) " This island is as interesting in a geological, as in a geology. 
picturesque point of view." || 

A. Substantially, it consists of a brecciated limestone, which Limestone. 
Mr. Hall at one time speaks of as terminating the Onondaga- 

salt group, ^f at another as corresponding with the Upper-Hel- 
derberg.^[ It is composed of argillo-calcareous laminse, mingled 
with a softer mud of the same quality. Dr. Houghton, in his 
survey of the State of Michigan, termed this limestone ' Mackinac 
limestone.'** 

B. Above this limestone is a stratum of drift, 100 f. thick, bh/u 
It forms the higher and greater part of the culminating eminence 

of the island. Imbedded in it, or resting on it, are numerous 



* XII. 3. 

t F. and W. pt. ii. p. 165. 

% lb. pt. i. p. 21. 

§ lb. pt. ii. p. 251. 

|| E. Desor, F. and W. pt. ii. p. 248. In my brief account of the geology of 
Mackinaw, the references to F. and W. refer, respectively, to all matter sub- 
sequent to the last reference. 

% See a. n. 86. 

** James Hall, F. and W. pt. ii. pp. 161—165. 



318 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. boulders, which, to judge from their external features, came from 
the northern shores of Lake Superior.* 

On account of this drift, " the island of Mackinaw constitutes 
a most important link in the chain of evidence," by which we 
" identify remote deposits, as belonging to a common epoch." 
It enables us "to connect the drift-deposits of Lake Superior f 
with those which form the plateaux of Wisconsin and Illinois." 
The same drift is found on the foreland east of Mackinaw. It 
can be traced, on the higher ground, along both sides of St. 
Mary's Kiver.j At Saut Ste. Marie, "it attains a height of 
nearly 100 f." in the thickly- wooded ridge § along the western 
shore, "and is separated from the river by a level and swampy 
plain, destitute of detrital materials, except boulders, || which 
repose on the sandstone." Pointe Iroquois ^f (600 f. high) is, 
probably, composed exclusively of drift-materials. 
Removal C. a. As there is no drift on Isle Eonde, or on Isle de Bois 

of drift 

from lower Blanc,** or, indeed, on any of the lower ground along the Strait 
of Mackinaw, nor, again, any on that in and along St. Mary's 

cause. Eiver, the natural inference is that the lower country has been 
denuded of it by violent currents of water.f f 

Date. b. The date of this denudation is shown by the gravel-terraces 

of the island. Not only do they not reach by any means so high 

* Mr. E. Desor (F. and W. pt. ii. p. 252) speaks of the striking similarity 
of the drift of Mackinaw to the shingle-banks of the island of Gothland in the 
Baltic, an account of which, by Sir R. Murchison, may be found in the 
Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society, 1846, p. 360, 

t It is supposed that drift-bluffs extend all along the southern side of Lake 
Superior, back of the coast. (F. and W. pt. i. p. 2C0.) 

: a. n. 26. 

§ a. n. 28 (3.), B. b. 

|| On the legend about them, see ib. 

•T XI. iii. (5.) [p. 100]. 

** F. and W. pt. i. p. 213. 

tt On the marks of violent denudation in'Isle Royale, see a. n. 40 (2.), and 
suppl. to ib. 



APPEXDIX-NOTES. 3 1 9 

a level, but there is nowhere a trace of drift between them amd 72. 
the limestone rock. It is clear, then, that the drift was removed 
before their formation. Probably the denudation was caused 
chiefly by " the retreat of the waters of the drift epoch, when 
the continent, after having been subsiding for a long period, 
began again gradually to rise.* 

D. The denuding currents -did not merely sweep away the Traces of 

action of 

drift. The rock beneath did not escape them. voter on 

r limestone . 

a. " That curious and picturesque rock," which is " known as The 
'the Sugar-Loaf,' f" is " a monument of" the denudation. It is Loaf. 
90 f. high, and stands on the plateau of the island, between the 
culminating height and the eastern cliffs. 

b. There are also on the plateau smaller columns of limestone, Minor 

traces. 

and in the rock occur caverns.:}: 

c. At about the same level as the base of ' the Sugar « The 

. . _ ' _ _ . _ . . . Arched ,. 

Loaf ' is ' the Arched Rock. § It is an excavation m a pro- Rock.' 
jecting part of the cliffs on the eastern side of the island. 
"The top of the span is about 90 f. above the lake-level," and 
is " surmounted by about 10 f. of rock." " At the base " of the 
cliff " are strewn numerous fragments, which have fallen from 
above." "It is evident that such an opening" could only 
have been made, when the rock was "near the level of a large 
body of water, like the great lake itself ; and we find a striking 
similarity between the denuding action of water here in time 



* E. Desor, ib. pt. ii. p. 255. 

t XII. 7.(1.). 

% F. and W. pt. i. p. 214. One, at least, of these caverns has been used as 
a sepulchre or as an ossuary. See (8.), B. 

§ See XII. 7. (2.), and the frontispiece of this book, which is after a sketch of 
it, by my wife, from the inland side of it. I prefer this view to that from the 
lake. The latter is represented in F. and W. by a lithograph, which is 
copied in D. 



320 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. past, and the same action, as now manifested, in the range of 
' the Pictured Eocks ' * on the shores of Lake Superior." f 
Terraces. E. a. The gravel-terraces, which have been incidentally men- 
he : srht, tioned, are on the eastern and southern sides of the island. A 

and site. 

little north of 'the Arched Kock,' one is heaped against the 
cliff, with a height of 20 f. ; another, at the eastern end of the 
village, forms a facing to the cliff, with a height of 80 f. ; while 
at 'Lover's Leap,' the southwestern headland of the island, 
there is a series, 105 f. high, and resembling a gigantic stair- 
case. Similar terraces " occur on the neighbouring coasts and 
islands." 

Materials. &. They consist of limestone-gravel, with which large pebbles 
are intermingled.}: 

origin, c. " No fossils have been found in " them. "So, to decide 

and date. 

whether their origin be marine, fresh-water, or brackish, we 
must compare them with the terraces of the adjacent lakes. 
Those of Lake Erie and Lake Huron have been ascertained to 
be of lacustrine origin. From their extent and position, there 
can be no doubt that they are at least as ancient as those of 
Mackinac; and, if the changes of level, by which they were 
brought into their present position, were all uniform, the surface 
of the ancient lake must have reached as high as the uppermost 
terrace of the island. There is therefore no necessity for re- 
sorting to local changes and disturbances, in order to account 
for the lacustrine origin of these terraces ; and, since we have 
in the terraces of Cleveland § direct evidence of the existence of 
such an extensive fresh-water basin, posterior to the great body 
of the drift, and previous to the alluvium, . . . there seems to 

* a. n. 32. 

f Jas. Hall, ib. pt. ii. p. 164. 

t E. Desor, ib. pp, 248, 253. 

§ A city on the southern shore of Lake Erie. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 321 

be some reason for referring the terraces of Mackinac to the- 72. 
same epoch: — at any rate, they cannot be later." 

Again, their situation indicates that they were of lacustrine 
origin. Their materials appear to have been brought from the 
south ; and the sheet of water, in which the currents, that brought 
them, operated, could scarcely have been other than a lake.* 

At the time when they were formed, "the topographical 
features of the region, and the distribution of the winds, must 
have been very similar to what they now are." f 

They " are due to successive upheavals ; and the base of each 
marks the limit of" one of "the periods of repose." j 

F. There is on the northern side of the island " a series of Beaches. 
gentle-sloping beaches, § rising to a height of 70 or 80 f. above 
the water. They are of the same materials as those of the 
terraces on the opposite side. The contrast between the two 
shores is to be attributed to the fact that the northern has been 
exempt from the wearing action of the currents. || 

(5.) A. Mr. Cabot IT remarks that " vegetation is luxuriant on vegeta- 

\ / II » TION. 

this island, though the trees are of small size." So Mrs. Jame- Trees. 

son ** says that " there is no large or lofty timber upon it, but a 

perpetual succession of low, rich groves, 

— alleys green, 
Dingles, and bosky dells." ft 



* lb. pp. 253, 254. 

t lb. p. 252. 

% lb. p. 251. 

§ I may add that there is a very clearly marked ancient beach on the 
southern side, east of the village. 

|| lb. p. 251. 

1T C. p. 23. 

** Ja. p. 190. 

ff Charlevoix (Ch. tom.iii. p. 281) says that the island "n'estqu'un rocher 
tout-a-fait sterile, et a peine convert d'un peu de mousse et d'herbes." He 
cannot well have seen it, except from a great distance. 
Y 



322 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. Mr. Cabot* mentions the maple and the beech, but these 
are by no means the only trees, f The prostrate juniper (Jitni- 
perus prostrata, or J. repens, or J. humilis J) abounds on the hil- 
locks of the southern part of the plateau that extends between the 
limestone cliff and the eminence in the middle of the island. 

s. B. At the time of our visit, as well as that of Mrs. Jameson, 

"strawberries, raspberries,! whortleberries, |[ and cherries were 
growing wild in abundance." % "We also found gooseberries and 
currants. In the case of the strawberries, the fruit was just 
then (July 20 — 25) ripe, and was remarkably delicious. There 
were two species, — the one like the 'Alpine,' the other like the 
' haut.bois,' of our gardens. 

rs C. Charming flowers ** bloom on the mossy banks of the little 

wooded knolls.** We heard that, from the spring to the ' fall/ 
there is a rapid and uninterrupted succession of them. " The 
flowers," writes Mr. Cabotff (who was here on the 23rd of June, 
1848), were beautiful: the twin-flower (Linncea borealis) so 
fine, that I thought it must be a new species ; J j then the beau- 
tiful 'ladies' slipper'" \Cypripedium\ " Lonicera, and Cyno- 
glossum." To these I may add a species of Sagittaria ('arrow- 
head ') and a species of Pyrola (' winter-green ' ) : but I have not 
been able to identify many beautiful flowers, that were in bloom 
at the time of our visit to the island. One of them was parti- 
cularly fragrant. 

* C.ib. He was there only one day, on that occasion. 

f See XII. 7. (2.) 

I See Rich. vol. ii. p. 319. 

§ See a. n. 23. 

|| See a. n. 24. 

1[ J a. ib. 

** XII. 3. 

tt C. ib. 

%% The following, on this flower, is from F. and W. pt. ii. p. 366 : — " The 
flowers large, generally brightly tinged with rose, and emitting a delightful 
fragrance. It was in bloom on the island of Mackinac late in June." 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 323 

(6.) The scenery of Mackinaw, though, on a small scale, is 72. 
very charming, — the southeastern side especially, from its 
happy union of wood, rock, and water. Here the "white lime- scexeey. 
stone cliffs, — beautifully contrasting with the green foliage that 
half covers them,"* — rise immediately from the lake, and " afford 
many scenes of picturesque beauty." t They "at once arrest the 
attention of the traveller, — more especially if he comes from 
Detroit, " since the whole western coast of Lake Huron is low 
and void of scenic interest." J Mrs. Jameson § calls Mackinaw 
"a lovely little island," and ; ' wonderfully beautiful." Catlin !| 
speaks of " the inimitable summer's paradise, which can always 
be seen at Mackinaw." Indeed, this islet reminds one of the 
lines with which Campbell •" concludes the description of the 
site of his " Pennsylvanian cottage " : — 

" So sweet a spot of earth, you might, T ween, 
Have guess'd some congregation of the elves, 
To sport by summer moons, had shaped it for themselves." 

(7.) In the first mention of Mackinaw by a White Man, fisheby. 
Father Dablon** speaks of it as " l'isle fameuseff de Missiliina- 
kinac, aux environs de laquelle, comme du lieu le plus celebre 
de tous en ces quartiers pour l'abondance du poisson, divers 
peuples out eu autrefois leur demeure." " Les Michiliimaki- 
nacs," — says Charlevoix ++ of a people, who seem to have been 

* P. p. 314. 

t F. and W. pt. i. p. 21. 

% E. Desor, ib. pt. ii. p. 248. 

§ Ja. ib. 

|| Cat. vol. ii. p. 161. 

U Gertrude of Wyoming, part ii. 1. 

** Jes., 1671, p. 25. 

ft This he terms the island in two other passages (ib. pp. 36, 39). So 
Charlevoix ( Ch. ib.) says that it is " un des lieux du Canada des plus celebres." 

XX He [Ch. torn. iii. p. 281] writes thus, speaking of the island : _ " Elle a 

ete longtems, selon quelques anciennes traditions sauvages, la principale 

y2 



324 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. the last of these " divers peuples" — "ne vivoient gueres que de 
peehe, et il n'y a peut-etre un seul endroit dans le monde, ou 
elle soit plus abondante." 

Dablon* writes thus in the same Relation: — " Selon la fac^on 
de parler des sauvages, c'est la ou est son pais : par tout ailleurs, 
pour grande quantite qu'il y en ait, ce n'est pas proprement sa 
demeure, mais seulement aux environs de Missilimakinacf 
De fait, outre le poisson commun a toutes les autres nations, 
. . . il s'y trouve de trois sortes de truites : une commune ; 
1' autre plus grosse, de trois pieds de long et d'un de large; et 
la troisieme monstrueuse, ear on ne l'explique point autrement, 
— estant d' ailleurs si grasse, que les sauvages, qui font leurs 
delices de la grasse, ont peine d'en manger. J Or la quantite en 
est telle, qu'un d'eux en darde avec une espee § sous les glaces 
jusqu'a quarante ou cinquante en trois heures de temps." || 

demeure d'une nation, qui portoit le meme nom, et dont on a compte, dit-on, 
jusqu'a trente bourgades, repandues aux environs de 1'isle. On pretend, que 
ce sont les Iroquois, qui l'ont detruite, mais on ne dit pas en quel terns, ni a 
quelle occasion. Ce qui est certain, c'est qu'il n'en reste plus aucun vestige ; 
j'ai vu quelque part que nos missionnaires en ont encore vu quelques restes." 
(Ch. ib.) 

The following was written by Dablon (Jes. ib. p. 37; sevpnty years be- 
fore : — " Ceux, qui portoient le nom de l'isle, et s'appelloient Missilima- 
kinac, estoient si nombreux, que quelques-uns d'eux, qui vivent encore, 
asseurent qu'ils composoient trente bourgades, et qu'ils s'estoient tous ren- 
fermez dans un fort d'une lieue et demie de circuit, lorsque les Iroquois les 
vinrent deffaire, enflez d'une victoire qu'ils avoient remportee sur trois mille 
hommes de cette nation, qui avoient porte la guerre jusques dans le pais 
mesme des Agniehionnons " [east of Like Cayuga (State of New York)]. 
See Intr. 

* Jes. ib. p. 36. 

t A legend about this, and a consequent custom, are introduced in XII. 
(4, 5), and given in the suppl. to a. n. 39. 

X This is, I suppose, the ' Mackinaw trout,' or 'great lake-trout ' [see XI. 
p. 114, and a. n. 77], though what is said of its fat would be peculiarly appro- 
priate in a description of the siscowet [XI. p. 112, a. n. 77]. 

§ See a. n. 77. 

|| A rechaujfe of the greater part of this passage appears in Ch. tcm.iii. 
p. 282. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 325 

La Salle and Hennepin regaled themselves on these trout, 72. 
when, in 1679, the Griffin, the first ship that rode on the upper 
lakes, * anchored in the harbour of Mackinaw, after weathering 
two violent storms on Lake Huron. Hennepin describes them 
as delicious, and as weighing from 50 to 60 lbs.f 

The island now exports fish in great quantities. 

(8.) A. a. A band of the Hurons called Etionnontateh- histori- 
cal 
ronnons t fled to Mackinaw from the eastern coast of Lake sketches 

t Ma r- 

Huron, after the ferocious raid made into their country by the £S, 

Founda- 

Iroquois in the winter of 1649 — 1650. § They stayed some tion. 
years || on the island, and then went westward, settling a long 
time near the Mission of the Holy Spirit at La Point e,tj with 
some Odahwas, who accompanied them in their wanderings. 
In 1670, terrified by the Nadoiiessi** (now called Sioux ** or 

* This vessel, the pioneer of the fur-trade in that region, had been built on 
the eastern bank of the Niagara River, about 6 ra. above the Falls. From an 
island at the entrance of Green Bay, she was sent back, laden with furs 
valued at 60,000 livres. She was never heard of afterwards, and is supposed 
to have foundered. 

t Captain Carver (p. 143) " frequently caught two at a time, of 40 lbs. 
weight each ; the common size" was " from 10 to 20 lbs." 

X Jes.tb. p. 37. Charlevoix (torn. i. p. 440) writes " Tionnontatez." On 
this" people, see Intr. 

§ See Intr. 

|| Jes. ib. 

IF In the map of 1671 (Jes.), the mission is placed at the western side of the 
base of la Pointe du Saint Esprit,' which is represented as a foreland, and 
not, as it is now, an island (see VI. [p. 46, f. n.]). 

** See a. n. 48 [p. 270], to which the following is supplemental. 

In the map of 1671 (Jes.), the country of the Nadoiiessi is said to be 60 
leagues west of Fond du Lac, the southwestern extremity of Lake Superior. 
They are spoken of as ' une grande nation de quarante bourgs" fJes. 1660. 
p. 27). 

"With regard to the word ' Sioux,' Catlin (vol. i. p. 208) writes thus : — 
*« The name ' Sioux ' (pronounced ' see-oo'), by which they are familiarly 
called, is one that has been given them by the French traders, the meaning 
of which I never have learned ; their own name being, in their language, 
' Dah-co-ta.' " ' Sioux ' is clearly an abbreviation of ■ Nadouessioux '(a form 
given in the index to Jes., and apparently the full form). They are first 
y3 



326 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. Dahkohtas), the Hurons and the Odahwas abandoned, — says 
Dablon,* — "la pointe du S. Esprit, et tous les champs qu'ils 
cultivoient depuis long-temps. Dans cette retraite, les Hurons, 
se souvenans des grands commoditez qu'ils avoient autrefois 
trouvees a Missilimakina " [sic], "jetterent les yeux sur cet 
endroit pour s'y refugier." f 

The return of the Hurons to Mackinaw was the occasion of 
the establishment of a mission there, entitled 'la mission de 
Saint Ignace.' It was taken charge of by no less a man than 
Jacques Marquette, who followed the Hurons from La Pointe. :[ 
Some foundations were laid in the winter of 1670 — 1671 ; § in 
1671 a chapel was built and fitted up ; || and in the same year 
the Hurons, who were 380 in number, ^f commenced the construc- 
tion of a fort near the chapel, to enclose all their dwellings.** 

Later writers seem to have not known, or not observed, that 
Dablonff speaks of the mission, no less than of the Huron 
village, as having been originally placed on the island, and 
that, again, this must be inferred from the statement that the 
fort, which enclosed all the Huron dwellings, was constructed 

mentioned as ' les Nadvesiv ' (Jes. 1640, p. 35), which form, as well as 
' Nadouessifs ' [see a. n. 80], seems to arise from the use of ' v ' for ' u.' 
Carver always calls them ' the Naudowessies.' 

" The personal appearance of this people is very fine and prepossessing ; 
their persons " are " tall and straight ; their movements " are " elastic and 
graceful." (Cat. ib.) 

* Jes., 1672, p. 36. 

t Charlevoix (Ch. ib.) can scarcely have seen Dablon's Relation. Besides 
placing this event in 1671 instead of 1670, he says of these Hurons, who had 
long cultivated the land near La Pointe, that " las de mener une vie errante, 
qui n'a jamais ete du gout de cette nation, s'e'tablirent a Michillimakinac." 

X Jes. ib. 

§ Jes. 1671, p. 25. 

|| Jes. 1672, p. 36. 

IT Jes. 1673, p. 62. 

** Jes. 1672. 

ft " • . • les Hurons en cette isle fameuse de Missilimakinac, ou nous avons 
commence l'hiver dernier la Mission de Saint Ignace." (Jes. 1671, p. 39.) 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 327 

near the chapel. "lis ne se placerent point," — says Charle- 72. 
voix,* — " dans l'isle meme, qui porte ce nom, et qui l'a donne 
a une partie du continent voisin ; mais sur une pointe de ce 
continent, laquelle avance au sud, et regarde une autre pointe 
tournee au nord." And so Mr. Parkmanf says that the mission 
was ' ; originally placed on the northern side of the strait." 

But the mission-settlement was on that foreland (hence called 
Pointe Ste. Ignace) as early as May, 1673, when its energetic 
founder set out hence to discover the Missi-sippi j and deter- 
mine its course. Talon § associated with him M. Joliet, a 
bourgeois of Quebec ; and they took with them five other 
Frenchmen. They ascended Fox|| Eiver from Green Bay,^[ 
crossed the narrow plateau,** to the great bend of the Eiver 
Wisconsin, reached the Great Eiver at Prairie du Chien, and 
descended it about as far as lat. 33°. ff Marquette never re- 
turned to the mission. Two years after, on his way back to it, 

* Ch. ib. t P. p. 283. 

% It bad been known only by report of tbe savages, as a great river that 
flowed neither northward nor eastward. (Ch. ib. p. 445.) 

Alloiiez (Jes. 1670, p. 100) had mentioned *' la grande riviere, nominee 
Messi-Sipi." Dablon (Jes. 1674), in his account of its discovery, speaks of 
it as " cette fameuse rividre, que les sauvages appellent ' Mississipi,' comme 
qui disait ' la Grande Riviere,' parce que, de fait, c'est la plus considerable de 
toutes celles qui sont en ce pays." [See a. n. 26 (1.). When I wrote that 
note, I was not acquainted with this passage.] Charlevoix (ib.) says the river 
is called 'Mechassipi' by some, and 'Micissipi' by others. In the Odahwa 
dialect, the word is ' Mashizeebi ' (Assik. iii.). § See p. 119. 

|| So named from the tribe called the Foxes. " Le nom propre de ces 
sauvages est Outagamis " (Ch. ib. p. 445, f. n.). Carver (p. 48) writes 
*' Ottigaumies." 

IT So called by the English on account of the luxuriance of the vegetation 
of its shores (Carv. p. 21). The French called it 'la Baye des Puans,' from 
the singular uncleanliness of the inhabitants of its shores (F. and W. pt. ii. 
p. 4C0). Charlevoix (torn. iii. p. 292), says that the other savages had given 
them that name before the French did. He conjectures that it arose from the 
multitude of putrid fish along the shore, where they had erected their wigwams. 

** This ' portage » is but If m. long (Carv. p. 42). See p. 254, f. n. 

tt The descent of the river was completed by La Salle in 1682. 
Y4 



site. 



328 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. lie died suddenly, at the mouth of a stream that enters Lake 
Michigan, from the east, a little south of lat. 44°.* 

In 1679, Hennepin found the village very advantageously 
situated on the foreland, and surrounded by palisades 25 f. 
higLf 
ttgls of ^ ^ ne advantages of the site are stated by Dablon in the 
following passages. 

" Ce lieu a tous les avantages qu'on peut souhaitter pour les 
sauvages : la pesche y est abondante en tout temps, les terres y 
sont de grand rapport; la chasse de Tours, du cerf,| et du chat 
sauvage s'y fait heureusement ; d'ailleurs c'est le grand abord 
de toutes les nations qui vont ou qui viennent du nord ou du 
midy." § 

" C'est la clef, et comme la porte pour tous les peuples du 
sud, comme le Sault || Test pour ceux du nord, n'y ay ant en ces 
quartiers que ces deux passages par eau pour un tres-grand 
nombre de nations, qui doivent se rendre ou en Tun ou en 
T autre de ces endroits, si elles veulent se rendre aux habita- 
tions Francoises. C'est ce qui presente une grande facilite, et 
pour l'instruction de ces peuples lorsqu'ils passent, et pour se 
transporter chez eux avec plus de commodite."^" 



* In p. 283, f. n., I was led into error, through getting secondhand a 
passage, which I have since referred to. It is in torn. iii. p. 314 of that edition 
of Ch., which I have consulted. 

t The Hurons of Mackinaw ventured to settle on Detroit River a few years 
after 1687. In that year their chief contrived to prevent peace between the 
French and the Iroquois lest the latter should have their hands free for con- 
tinuing their fierce war with his own people, and brought about the extinc- 
tion of that ancient feud by his professions of indignation at the apparent 
perfidy of the French. (See Ch. torn. i. p. 535 ; Sch. I. pt. iii. p. 518.) 

X a. n. 34. 

§ Jes. 1672, p. 36. 

|| On the mission there, see p. 199. 

Tf Jes. 1671, p. 36, 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 329 

B. The Mackinaw mission, — which, in less than two years 72. 

after its foundation, had been moved from the island to the of the Eng- 
lish, and 

foreland on the northern side of the strait, — was accompanied adZn- 3 
by a fort, that occupied as important a place among the posts of ur€8 ' 
the soldiers of France, as the mission did among those of her 
priests. Both were afterwards moved to the southern side of 
the strait : the fort, — which became the centre of the fur- trade 
of this region, — was placed on the foreland opposite to its 
former site, the mission at L'Arbre Croche, an Odahwa village 
near the head of the first great inlet southwest of the fort.* 

The fort fell into the hands of the British by the capitulation 
of Canada in 1760. But it was not till the 10th of February 
1763, that the treaty was signed at Paris, by which France 
solemnly ceded to Great Britain all her North- American posses- 
sions east of the Missi-sippi, and the latter commanded her 
settlers to withdraw from the valley of the Ohio and the adjacent 
regions, as they were to be reserved for the Eed Man. Mean- 
while the Canadians told the aborigines that the King of France 
had been slumbering, but was now awake, and sending his big 
war-canoes and countless hosts up the Missi-sippi and the St. 
Lawrence. Plots were consequently formed by the ' Indians ' 
for the general massacre of the English garrisons. Two were 
discovered and crushed in the summers of 1761 and 1762; but 
a third issued in a formidable rising at the beginning of May, 
1763. It was headed by Pontiac, an Odahwa f chief, whose 



* See p. 570. Dr. Schoolcraft (Sch. I. pt. iii. p. 535) says that this settle- 
ment seems to have been founded about the year 1650, and after the defeat of 
the Algonquins and the Hurons, by the Iroquois, between Quebec and 
. Montreal [see Intr.]. He says that it is the chief settlement of the Odahwa 
nation, and that it " is divided into five villages." See a. n. 71. 

t Carver (p. 153) says he was a chief of the Miamies. The name of this 
people appears in Maumee River and Bay (at the head of which is Toledo). 



330 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. home lay on Isle a la Peche, an islet at the outlet of Lake St. 
Clair. On the discovery of a plot he devised for the capture of 
Fort Detroit, he threw off the mask, broke into open warfare, 
and long kept the garrison in a most desperate situation.* 

While Odahwas claimed the western part of the peninsula 
between Lakes Michigan and Huron, Ojibwas claimed the 
eastern.f Both of these peoples, as well as most of their neigh- 
bours, were very hostile to the English. Many of their warriors 
had fought on the side of the French in the late war. Those of 
Saginaw Bay declared themselves against the English simulta- 
neously with Pontiac himself. Beyond them, there was a small 
village on Thunder J Bay, and there was on the island of 
Mackinaw a larger one, containing about 100 warriors; while 
some of the same tribe had encamped on a plain near Fort 
Michillimackinac.§ Before the end of May, those of this 
northern group heard of Pontiac' s doings, and made a plot for 
the capture of that fort, which was only second to Fort Detroit 
in importance. They did not communicate previously with the 
Odahwas of L'Arbre Croche, lest this people should claim a 
share of the spoil. || 

A warning of the impending calamity was in vain given to 
Alexander Henry, ^[ one of four English traders in the fort. A 
year before, Wawatam, an Ojibwa chief who lived on the island 
of Mackinaw, had brought him a present, telling him that, in 

* They held out heroically and successfully. Pontiac's hopes were quenched 
at the close of October, when he heard of the peace between the French and 
the English. 

t Carv. p. 29. 

% So called from the frequency of thunder-storms there. See Carv. 
p. 145. 

§ Letter, dated eight days after its capture, from Captain Etherington, its 
commandant, to Major Gladwyn, the commandant of Fort Detroit. 

|| P. has been hitherto my authority, except where another is given. 

11 Henceforth Henry is my authority, except where another is given. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 331 

the great fast of his youth,* he had dreamed of adopting an 72. 
Englishman as his brother, and that he had recognised Henry 
as the man pointed out in his dream. He now said, in the 
figurative language of the Ked Man, that, during the winter, he 
had often been disturbed by the noise of evil birds ; he re- 
marked that there were many ' Indians ' round the fort who had 
never shown themselves in it ; and he urged his adopted brother 
to accompany him and his family to Saut Ste. Marie. After in 
vain repeating their warnings and entreaties next day, Wawatam 
and his wife departed in tears. The following day was the 4th 
of June, King Greorge the Third's birthday. An Ojibwa " came 
to tell " Henry " that his nation was going to play at bagga- 
tiway,\ for a high wager, with the Sacs or Saakies," \ who had 
come from the lower part of the River Wisconsin, where they 
and the Foxes § then dwelt together. "He invited" Henry 
" to witness the sport, adding that the commandant would be 
there and would bet on the side of the " Ojibwas. Henry 
represented to Captain Etherington, the commandant, "that the 
' Indians ' might possibly have some sinister end in view." He 
" only smiled." No wonder : for, according to his report of the 
affair, "the savages" had "played the game almost every day 
since their arrival." 

The Ojibwas had induced all they could to go outside and 
look on at the match. " They played from morning until noon ; 
then," — says Captain Etherington, "throwing their ball close 
to the gate, || they came behind Lieutenant Lesley and me, 

* a. n. 74. 

t a. n. 67. See also Carv. p. 3G4, and Cat. vol. ii. 123—126, 134, 135. 

% Probably this word, which Charlevoix writes " Sakis " and Carver writes 
" Saukies," is derived from 'sahging' [see p. 184]. The Missisahgas, whose 
name is partly composed of that word, are called ' Missisakis ' by Henry. 

§ See A. a,, f. n. 

|| Carver (p. 19) says that, to prevent suspicion of their plot, they two or 
three times drove the ball over the stockade, seemingly by accident. 



332 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. seized us, and carried us into the woods. The rest rushed into 
the fort, where they found their squaws, whom they had pre- 
viously planted there, with their hatchets hid under their 
blankets." 

Henry gives a vivid — I suspect, highly coloured — descrip- 
tion of the horrors of the massacre that followed.* Part of it he 
witnessed from a room, in which, fortunately for himself, he had 
been writing letters, — part from a garret, in which he was ere 
long concealed by an * Indian' woman, the slave of a Canadian. f 
After several fortunate escapes from the savages, he and three 
others were placed in a canoe, to be taken by seven of their 
captors to the Beaver j Islands, a group between the Strait of 
Mackinaw and Green Bay. The Ojibwas kept close to the 
shore on account of a thick fog, and approached the 'portage* 
leading to L'Arbre Croche. Here an Odahwa induced them to 
approach the land, and, while he kept them in conversation, a 
large band of that people § rushed out of the bushes, seized the 
prisoners, and took them back to the fort, assuring them that 
they would have been killed and devoured, and complaining 
loudly of the Ojibwas, because they had destroyed the English 
without consulting them. However, after receiving part of the 
plunder of the fort, they handed back the prisoners. Wawatam 



* Captain Etherington and Mr. Henry agree in stating that there were two 
subalterns, and that one of these two, as well as one of the traders, was killed 
when the ' Indians ' burst into the fort. 

With regard to the privates, there is a great discrepancy between their 
accounts. The trader says that they had amounted to 90, and that 70 were 
killed. From the letter of the commandant, whom one would be inclined to 
trust most, it appears that they had amounted to 35; that 15 were killed at 
first, and 5 afterwards. 

t There were nearly 300 Canadians in and near the fort. They neither 
opposed the ' Indians,' nor suffered injury from them. 

J See suppl. to a. n. 39. 

§ Their village contained 250 warriors. (P. p. 283). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 333 

then appeared, and ransomed his adopted brother. Humours 72. 
reaching them of the approach' of an English force, the Ojibwas 
— consisting of 350 warriors, their families, and their goods and 
chattels — embarked for the island of Mackinaw,* Wawatam 
and Henry being among them. The other Englishmen were 
taken by the Odahwas to L'Arbre Croche, and thence journeyed 
to Montreal by the route of the River Ottawa. f 

On his arrival at Mackinaw, Henry, though the adopted brother 
of a chief of that island, was still in no small danger, — especially, 
while the Ojibwas were carousing there. "Wawatam therefore 
took him to " the mountain." There he " was to remain hidden 
till the liquor should be drunk." This height was then, as now, 
"thickly covered with wood, and very rocky toward the top." 
They came ere long " to a large rock, at the base of which was " 
a cave, in which Wawatam advised Henry to stay till he re- 
turned. Its " entrance was nearly ten feet wide ; " its inmost 
part was shaped like an oven ; and there was " a further aper- 
ture, too small to be explored." " I broke," — says Henry, — 
" small branches from the trees, and spread them for a bed, then 
wrapt myself in my blanket, and slept till daybreak. . . . 
When daylight visited my chamber, I discovered, with some 
feelings of horror, that I was lying on a heap of human bones 
and skulls, which covered all the floor. { The day passed without 
the return of Wawatam, and without food. As night approached, 
I found myself unable to meet its darkness in the charnel-house. 
. . . I chose therefore an adjacent bush for this night's 
lodging; but in the morning I awoke hungry and dispirited, 

* In p. 221, f. 11., I had occasion to mention an incident that occurred on 
the way. 

t See p. 259. 

% XII. 8. " All the bones,"— says Mrs. Jameson, — " have been removed 
and interred in a picturesque little cemetery hard by." 



334 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. and almost envying the dry bones, to the view of which I 
returned. At length my 'Indian' friend returned, making 
many apologies for his long absence, the cause of which was an 
unfortunate excess in the enjoyment of his liquor." 

Neither was Wawatam, nor were the other Ojibwas, aware of 
the existence of the bones. "After visiting" the cave, "which 
they immediately did, almost every one offered a different 
opinion. Some advanced that, at a period when the waters 
overflowed the land, the inhabitants of the island had fled into 
the cave, and been there drowned ; others that, when the Hurons 
made war upon them (as tradition says they did)," they " hid 
themselves in the cave, and, being discovered, were there mas- 
sacred. For myself," — says Henry, — "I am disposed to believe 
that this cave was an ancient receptacle of the bones of prisoners, 
sacrificed and devoured at war-feasts.* I have always observed 
that the Indians pay particular attention to the bones of sacri- 
fices, preserving them unbroken, and depositing them in some 
place kept exclusively for that purpose." There is, however, no 
need of supposing that the human beings, to whom these bones 
belonged, met with a violent death. The cave may have been 
used either as a sepulchre f or as an ossuary. J Dr. Schoolcraft§ 
says that Chusco, || — an aged Od'dhw& jossa7teed,^ who was born 
at L'Arbre Croche, resided some time at Mackinaw, and died 
there in 1838, — held that these bones were deposited by the 
Mushkodainsug .** In this passage and elsewhere, ft Dr. School- 

* XII. 8. 

f See a. n. 76(2.), A. b. 

X See ib., C. 

§ Sch. I. pt. i. p. 307. 

|] This word is derived from wazkusk, a muskrat [a. n. 56]. (Ib. p. 389.) 

II a. n. 75(1.). 

** See Intr. 

ft lb. p. 103, Sch. Am. I. p. 324. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 335 

craft implies that bones have been found in more than one 72. 
cave on the island. This is expressly stated by Mr. Parkman.* 
"In many of the caves," — he writes, — "have been found 
quantities of human bones, as if, at some period, the island had 
served as a grand depository for the dead;f yet of these remains 
the present race of ' Indians' can give no account." f 

There were daily arriving from Detroit ' Indians/ who had 
lost relatives or friends in the war, and would certainly retaliate 
on any Englishman they found. Henry was therefore dressed 
in the Eed Man's costume. So attired, he, during the following 
winter, hunted with Wawatam on the peninsula between Lakes 
Michigan and Huron. In the next May he went to Saut Ste. 
Marie, and was permitted to accompany the deputies j sent by 
the Ojibwas of that place to Sir W. Johnson at Fort Niagara. 
He thus escaped from what he terms his " captivity," the "nar- 
rative " of which, " written by himself," comprises not only an 
entertaining account of his adventures, but many valuable ob- 
servations of the life and manners of the Eed Man. 

In the year after its capture by the Ojibwas, Port Michilli- 
mackinac was reoccupied by the English. § In the same year 
commenced the settlement of White Men on the island. || In 
1780 the fort was moved to the island, as being a safer posi- 
tion.^ Negotiations were previously carried on with the Red 
Men, on account of the veneration with which they regarded 
it.** The fort was long of great importance, as a trading 
post. 

* P. p. 314. 

t XII. 8. 

t See a. n. 75 (I.). 

§ P. p. 4m. 

|| D.p. 111. 

% Sch. I. pt. iii.p. 333. 

** H. Tv. S. (Schoolcraft ?), Hist. Mag. vol. i. p. 186. 



BOATS. 



336 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. C. The name of the island is conspicuous in the history of 
A h ngio- the Anglo-American wars. In 1796 it was ceded to the United 

American 

wars - States. The fort was then strengthened. In 1812 it was taken 
by the British.* They added to the strength of its defences. 
In 1814, the ' Americans ' fitted out an expensive armament 
for the purpose of retaking it, but were defeated with great 
loss. However, it was restored to them by the treaty of Grhent, 
• which was signed in the following November. 

harboue. ( 9 ) " The harbour is excellent." f It is on the southern 
side of the island, and is formed by a recess in the limestone 
cliff. La Salle and Hennepin found here 6 fms. of water, and 
a clay bottom. 

sail- (10.) " Hundreds of small sail-vessels, in the fishing-trade, 

have here their headquarters. Drawn upon the pebbled beach, 
or gliding about the little bay, are the far-famed ' Mackinaw 
boats,' the perfection of light sail-boats." They may be seen 
"far out in the lake, beating up against winds" of considerable 
violence.j 

(11.) Between the shore and the bluff, there is a sloping 
undercliff, some 300 yards wide. On this site, which reminds 

* The British general was much indebted to a band of Ojibwas under 
Shinguakongse (= ' little pine '), the son of an Ojibwa woman and a British 
officer of Scotch birth. 

The evening before its capture, the general asked Shinguakongse for his 
advice. His reply was: — "I will dream about it to-night, general." 
The following morning he said : " I have dreamed, general." " 1 have 
dreamed too," the latter rejoined ; " let us compare our dreams." " I," said 
Shinguakongse, "dreamed that a thick fog came two hours before sunrise; 
and that thou, general, preparedst, with drum-beating and great noise, to 
attack the fortress in front, while I and my * Indians,' concealed by the fog, 
paddled round the island, and mounted the heights. Thou hadst drawn all 
our enemies to the front: I climbed the undefended walls in their rear; I 
fired on them ; they surrendered, filled with terror. I saw their great star- 
spangled banner fall down." "You dreamed well, Shinguakongse," — said 
the general, — " and I have dreamed like you. Let us set to work at once." 
The dream was fulfilled literally. (K. p. 378.) 

t F. and W. pt. i. p. 21. X " Jay," D. p. 117. 



APPENDIX -NOTES. 337 

one of the back of the Isle of Wight, lies the village. In 1861, 72. 
it was said to contain 1,500 inhabitants. During August and 
September, its population is swelled by hundreds of ' Indians ', 
who come here to receive the f presents ', by which they are 
compensated for the loss of their hunting-grounds. 
, (12.) A. Fort Holmes, as the fort erected in 1780 was named, defex- 
stood on that height, which has been mentioned as the culmi- ?<***• 
nating part of the island. We found here a large oval piece of 
cleared ground, within which was a small circle, surrounded by 
a moat, and then occupied by a signal-station. Mounting the 
ladder, I got a fine view. It comprised the whole of the little 
archipelago, and the coasts on either side of the straits. 

B. The present fort stands above the village, on the edge of Present. 
the cliff. It is connected with the village and the water by a 
covered way leading down the face of the bluff. We found it 

like that at Saut Ste. Marie.* It contained 65 men, — nine 
more, said the commandant, than the number considered 
necessary. 

The harbour is also defended by a water-battery. 

C. Messrs. Foster and Whitney f say of Mackinaw that, "as Future. 
a military post, it may be considered the Gibraltar of the 
Lakes;" and Mr. Cabot J terms the present fort "a miniature 
Ehrenbreitstein." These expressions are only true of the natural 
advantages of the place. In an official paper, § — dated 10th 
November, 1862, — it is stated that "the Straits of Mackinaw 

are almost entirely undefended by fortifications." || It is not 



* P. 198. f F. and W. pt. i. p, 21. j C. p. 23. 

§ Colonel Webster's report to the U. S. Secretary of War, on the practica- 
bility and advantages of opening a passage for gunboats and armed vessels 
from the Missi-sippi to the lakes, by improving the navigation of the Illinois 
River, constructing dams and docks, and enlarging the Illinois and Michigan 
Canal. 

|| The same is said of Detroit River. 



338 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

72. likely that the merchants of Chicago and Milwaukee will allow 
them to continue in this state. Mackinaw is naturally the key 
of Lake Michigan. The possessor of it should be able to shut 
that lake to an enemy and open the lower lakes to a friend. 
The channel would be impassable to a hostile force, had vessels 
to run the gauntlet of guns of the present range, placed on thje 
heights of that islet, on Isles Eonde and Bois Blanc, and also 
on those opposite forelands, which were formerly occupied by 
French forts. 



73. 
The Snow-shoe.* 

(1.) Object. 

(2.) Description. 

(3.) Ojibwa name. 

(4.) The carriboo's snow-shoe. 

(5.) The snow-shoe dance. 

(1.) The snow-shoe is designed to keep the foot from sinking 
in deep snow. It will be remembered of Hiawatha, how 

" Wrapt in furs and armed for hunting, 

On his snow-shoes strode he forward." t 

(2.) It is from 4 to 6 f . long, and from 13 to 20 inches wide, 
having, generally, the shape of a boat, or that of a fish of broad 
belly and long tail, such as the skate. The framework is of 
wood, and consists of two bows at the sides and two or three 
crossbars. Inside is a net-work of deer-sinews or strips of hide. 
The foot rests on a leather-thong, which is fastened to the 

* XII. 8. t H.xx. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 339 

bows, and, by cross-bands, to the cross-bars. In the centre of 73. 
this thong, there is a loop just large enough for the toes to pass 
through, and there is in the network a hole, in which they rnove 
freely. There is another thong behind the heel, to prevent the 
foot slipping out* 

(3.) The Ojibwas call the snow-shoe ' agim! The origin of ojibwa 
this term seems to be similar to that of ' wigwam! f It is appa- 
rently derived from ' agimak\ — ' ash-wood', the material of its 
framework. \ 

(4.) It is a curious fact that the foot of the carriboo § is a that 01 

THF CAH- 

natural snow-shoe, occupying, as it does, so great a space, that EIL °°- 
the animal does not sink in the deepest snow. 

(5.) Catlin || witnessed a dance called 'the snow-shoe dance.' the 



ceedingly picturesque." So it indeed appears in his illustration. 
In the centre, there are struck in the ground three spears, deco- 
rated with snow-shoes and eagle-feathers. The men have on 
their heads plumes of the same kind, on their feet snow-shoes, 
and in their hands the rattles^ used in religious ceremonies. 
The dance is accompanied by a song of thanksgiving to the 
Great Spirit, for having sent the snow, thereby enabling men to 
use snow-shoes, " and easily take the game." 

* For further particulars, see K. pp. 332—337, Sch. I. pt. iii. p. G8, and 
Bal. pp. 49, 50, Cat. vol. ii. p. 139. The two latter passages have illustrations, 
f See a. n. 54. 

J K. p. 332. § a. n. 34. 

II Cat. ib. H See a. n. 75. 



sxovr- 

SHOE 
DASCE. 



340 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

74. 

The Ked Man's Ideas about Dreams.* 

" In no respect," — says Charlevoixf — " is the superstition of 
these barbarians greater than in respect to dreams. They cannot 
understand our disregarding them. 

" They explain them in various ways. Sometimes they say 
that the reasonable soul ranges abroad, while the sensitive soul 
continues to animate the body. Sometimes, on the contrary, 
dreams are said to be visits from the objects dreamt of. Some- 
times it is said that the familiar spirit {genie familier) gives 
salutary counsels about things to come. They are most com- 
monly regarded as orders given, or desires inspired, by some 
spirit. 

"Whatever is thought of them, they are always regarded as 
sacred, and as the means by which the gods ordinarily make 
known to men their wishes. Hence it is deemed a religious 
duty to carry them out." 



75. 

The Eed Man's 

Communicators with 

the Mahnitoos. 

(1.) The jossakeed ('seer'). 

A. The man and his doings. 

B. His name. 

* XIII. i. (2.) ; a. n. 36 (p. 221) ; a. n. 72 (p. 336, f. n.). 

t Ch. torn. iii. p. 353. I have, here and there, transposed, epitomized, 
and paraphrased the passage, without adding to it at all, or altering its 
purport. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 34 1 

(2,) The meeda (' professor of magic medicine '). 75. 

A. The man and his doings, 

B, His name. 

(3.) The wakbakno (' magician '). 

A. The man and his doings. 

B. His name. 

(1.) A. Of the Bed Man's professional communicators with theJos. 

v 7 * SAKEED. 

that spirit-world, which occupies so much of his thoughts, the ^^? w 
highest and most venerated is the jossakeed (= 'seer').* d0lnf ^- 
Such men, like the Hebrew seers or prophets, " start up at long 
intervals," and act individually. The jossakeed prepares himself 
by fasting, and taking the steam-bath, in a solitary wigwam. A 
small hut, open at the top, is then erected for him. It is com- 
posed of stout posts, covered with skins or birch-bark. It is but 
just large enough for him to lie down in it. " After swallowing 
a mysterious potion made from a root," he crawls in under the 
covering of the hut, taking with him his drum.f Kneeling 
and bowing very low, he begins his incantations. At length he 
announces that he has called the spirits around him, and that 
he is ready to give responses. \ 

B. Schoolcraft § says that the substantive * jossakeed' is His name. 
derived from a verb, 'jeesitkd.' What he writes about this verb 
is very confused and inconsistent. " It means" — says he — " to 
mutter or peep. The word is taken from the utterance of sounds 
of the human voice, low on the ground. This is the position in 
which the response is made by the seer." 

Schoolcraft leaves the original meaning of the verb undeter- 
mined. If it be 'to peep,' then the Ojibwa word 'jossakeed' has 

* XIII. v. (2.) 

t The drum is made of a "piece of raw hide stretched over a hoop, very 
much in the shape of a tambourin," or " in the form of a keg, with a head 
of raw hide at each end." (Cat. vol. i. p. 242.) 

t Sch. I. pt. i. pp. 359, 389 ; K. pp. 244, 278 ; He.; Carv. p. 123. 

§ Sch. I. pt. i. p. 389. 

z 3 



342 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

75. much the same origin as the English word 'seer/ which means 

* one who sees visions.' * 

the (2.) A. Next to the jossaJceed in the veneration of the Eed 

Meeda. ' " 

Tie man Man is the meeda ( = ' professor of magic medicine ' ),* He is a 

doings. member of a brotherhood, in which superstitious usages are 

handed down from generation to generation. The work of the 

meeda consists in driving out, or diverting from its malignant 

operations, that spirit, which is supposed to be the cause of the 

sickness of his patient, and which may either be the spirit of an 

animal or that of an inanimate object. For this purpose, he 

employs "incantations and ceremonies," beating a drum, and 

shaking a sheesheehwoy (rattle) f — he makes "frightful noises 

and gestures/' — he gazes fixedly at the patient, — and he sucks 

the seat of pain with his mouth, or with a hollow bone, which 

he then swallows and vomits. He also makes use of charms, 

which he carries in bags, made of the entire skins of animals, 

and attached to his dress. J Kohl, § on one occasion, found the 

* XIII.i. (4), v. (2.). Schoolcraft (Sch. I. pt. i. p. 358) calls him "the 
meda or medawininee" The latter is the word in full, medawin being = 
' the meda-art ' (win is = * thing '), and ininee being = 'man ' (see p. 292). 
Kohl (K. p. 41) writes mide. Assikenack (ii.) writes the plural (medaivakg 
(g being the suffix that denotes the animate plural). See a. n. 33 (p. 210), a. n. 
48 (p. 265). 

t The shee-shee-kWoy (Cat. vol. i. p. 242; chichicoue in Carv. p. 385) is an 
instrument that imitates the sound of the rattle of the rattle-snake, which 
animal bears the same name, a name expressing that sound. This instrument 
serves " to mark the time in " the " dances and songs " of the Red Men. It 
produces "a shrill" and " disagreeable noise." It is generally made of raw 
hide or of a calabash, and charged with dry bones, pebbles, beans, or peas. 
Sometimes it is made of the antelope's hoofs, strung on a stick. It is used 
by the meeda and the wahbahno, but not by the jossakeed. (Cat. vol. i. 
p. 242, vol. ii. p. 134; Carv. p. 385 ; K. p. 44 ; Assik. ii. 302 ; Sch. I. pt. i. 
p. 359.) 

X The foregoing is based on the following authorities: — Dr. T. S. Wil- 
liamson, in Sch. I. pt. i. p. 250 ; K. p. 105 ; He. ; Hi. vol. ii. p. 127; Cat. vol. i. 
p. 40 ; Carv. p. 385. 

§ K. p. 381. 



APPEXDIX-XOTES. 343 

contents of these charm-bags to consist of " small pieces of copper 75. 
and other metal, bones, shells of various sizes and colours, small 
packets of roots, papers, or bags, of red, * or green, or yellow 
powders, and other substances, wrapped in swan's down." 
" Among them" were "also painted or written birch-bark 
books," which, doubtless, contained incantations. f " These 
varied contents of the skin-bag " are supposed to emit an exha- 
lation, that can "blow down and kill a person, as well as restore 
him to life and strength." J - 

B. Schoolcraft§ says that the word m eeda means " a mysterious His name 
principle," || and that " its original significance is obscured by 
its present application to medical influence." I have long sus- 
pected that the reverse of this is the truth, and that the word 
was imported by the French. I am confirmed in this suspicion 
by the perusal of Cat-Jin's book.*[ He writes thus, at the junc- 
tion of the Yellow-Stone Eiver with the Missouri (about lat. 48° 
and long. 103°): — " The word 'medicine', in its common accep- 
tation here, means ' mystery.' The fur-traders are nearly all 
French ; and in their language a doctor, or physician, is called 

* XIII. iii. (6.), (7.), (8.).— The following is from The net in the bay (p. 19) 
by the Bishop of Rupert's Land: — " He" [a "conjuror" of the ' swampy ' 
Crees (see a. n. 48, p. 270)] " showed me, as a special favour, that which gave 
him his power— a bag with some reddish powder in it." 

The Red Men — " the Ojibwas particularly " — '* are very fond of decorating 
their faces with" " red earth or vermilion," especially when they go 'on the 
war-patn. 7 (Hi. vol. ii. p. 137 ; Cat. vol. i. p. 222, vol. ii. pp. 222, 242 ; Carv. 
p. 304 ; K. pp. 16, 42, 47.)— VIII. 3 ; IX. i. ; XII. 8 ; XIII. iii. (6.) ; a. n. 39, 
p. 235. 

f See K. pp. 285—296, Sch. I. pt. i. p. 339. 

t K. p. 44. See also Sch. I. pt. i. pp. 85—87. 

§ lb. p. 358. 

|| He says, almost in the same breath, that the word denotes ' a mysterious 
principle', 'a magician', and 'to perform magic', accompanying the latter 
statement by telling us that it is shown to be a verb by its taking the inflection 
win to form a substantive = 'magic medicine' [tneddwm in Sch. ib. % 
mideiciirin in K. p. 41, medaowin in Assik. ii. p. 304). 

«J Ciit. vol. i. p. 35. 

z 4 



344 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

' medecin? The Indian country is full of doctors ; and, — as 
they are all magicians, and are skilled, or profess to be skilled, 
in many mysteries, — the word i medecine' > has become habitually 
applied to everything mysterious ; and the English and Ameri- 
cans have adopted the same word, and have denominated these 
personages ' medicine-men.' The ' Indians ' do not use the word 
' medicine, however ; but in each tribe they have a word of their 
own construction, synonymous with * mystery ' or ' mystery- 
man.' " Schoolcraft says' that the meeda is only called in when 
the musheehee-win-inee ( = ' draught-man,' or ordinary practi- 
tioner) has failed, or the sufferer is considered to be beyond his 
powers. Catlin,* on the other hand, speaks of the ordinary 
practitioner and the professor of supernatural medicine, as one 
and the same person. He says of the ' medicine-men,' that 
"their first prescriptions are roots and herbs, and, when these 
have all failed, their last resort is to ' medicine' or mystery." 
the (3.) A. The wahbahno (= ' magician'), as well as the meeda, 

is a member of a brotherhood. He employs the same means for 
the purpose of influencing the spirits; but his mysteries are, 
" a degraded form " of those of the meeda, their aim being 
success in gaining the object of amorous passion. f 

B. The appellation wahbahno is derived from wahbun, which 
means ' the east-wind, J ' the east,' and c the dawn.' It arises 
from the fact that "they continue their orgies till daylight." § 

* Cat. vol. i. p. 39. 

t Sch. I. pt. i. pp. 359, 3(36. 

X V. 11 ; VI. I. 

§ Sch. I. pt. i. p. 3GG, pt. ii, p. 425. 



Wah. 
i, a iino. 
The man 
and his 
doings. 



APPEXDIX-NOTES. £45 

76. 

The Ojib^va name of the Milky Way.* 

The Ojibwas call the Milky Way Jeebif-kahna (= 'ghost- 
path', 'path of the dead').| The name explains itself. § 

77. 
Fishing with Nets and Speaes. 

(1.) Fishing with nets. 

A. Fishing with the scoop-net. 

B. Fishing with the gill-net. 
(2.) Fishing with spears. 

A. Description of the spears. 



* XIII. iv. (1.) [p. 140]. 

t XI. iv. (2.) [p. 101] ; XII. 8 [p. 127]. In a. n. 39, p. 231, I conjectured 
that ckibi in the word Chibiabos (H.) is a dialectic variety ofjeebi (' ghost') 
— just as we have Ojibwa and Chippewa [see a. n. 48, p. 26b~\,jeemakn and 
cheemahn [see a. n. 51, (1.)] Since that conjecture was printed, I have found 
it confirmed by the following passage in Sch I., part iii. p. 541 : — " Atchipia 
—a term used by the Miami nation " [see p. 329, f. n.] " to denote the soul. 
It is used to signify a flying phantom. It is a term in which we perceive the 
Chippewa phrase jebi (written chipi), meaning ' a ghost.' " 

With regard to -abos in Chibiabos, see suppl. to a. n. 39. 

% K. p. 213. 

§ For the reasons given in my Preface, I here merely append the fol- 
lowing : — 

(1.) For illustration of XT I. 8, it suffices to refer to War. vol. i. p. 242; 
Carv. pp. 399, 402 ; Cat. vol. i. pp. 89—91, vol. ii. pp. 9—11 ; He. 

(2.) As to a. n. 72, p. 334,— an account of ossuaries discovered at Minnis-avs 
(or Isle Ronde) [see XIV. 1, and pp.188, 293 f. n.], an islet S.E. of 
Mackinaw, and in the township of Beverley, N.W. of Hamilton, may be 
found in Sch. I. pt. i. p. 103, and Sen. Am. I. p. 319, with which compare 
Hi. vol. i. pp. 89—91, Carv. pp. 65, 8G, 401, 402, Cat. vol. i. pp. 89—91, vol. ii. 
pp. 9— 11, and He. 



346 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

7 ^ B. Day-spearing. 

■ a. Summer. 

b. Winter. 

C. Night-spearing. 

D. The uses of a cord. 

E. The use of a decoy-fish. 



nets. (1.) A. In their struggling ascent of a rapid, the whitensh* 

S coop- net. 

and other fishes are caught with a scoop-net attached to a long 
pole, f the fisherman standing either on a rock, | or in a canoe, 
which an assistant keeps headed against the stream. § 

Giu-net. B. In winter, at which season whitefish and larger species 
resort to deep water, a series of holes is made through the ice, 
a gill-net is pushed by its head-lines from one hole to the other, 
buoys and sinkers are attached to it, and it is let down to the 
bottom. In this way "fish are sometimes brought up near 
Mackinaw || from a depth of 80 fathoms." ^[ 
spears. (2.) A. The fish-spears of the Red Men are " very neatly 

tio7i. ripm made, and admirably adapted for the purpose." Some " have 
two prongs.** Others" have "three," the central being shorter 
than the two outer, which slightly diverge. Others have 

* VIII. 2. [p. 72] ; XI. (especially pp. 88—90, 109, 110, 114, and f. n. a, i, 
r) ; a. n. 47 (p. 264). The whitefish ( Corcgonus sapidhsimus, Agassiz) •' has 
all the characters of the salmons, but no teeth " (Agassiz, in C. p. 34). It 
usually does not weigh more than 4 lbs., but in Lake Champlain is sometimes 
taken weighing 6 lbs. (Thomps. p. 143). It is caught in perfection in the 
rapids of Saut Ste. Marie (Cat. vol. ii. p. 162, Ja.^p. 231, Carv. p. 142 ; com- 
pare XI. f. n. i [p. 110], a. n. 28 [p. 199]). "A l'eau et au sel "—writes 
Charlevoix (tome iii. p. 282)—" rien n'est meilleur en fait de poisson." For 
other strong eulogies of it see Bal. p. 251, Carv. ib., Cat. ib., He., Ja. ib., K. 
p. 3z6., 

f XL [p. 113]. 

% bal. p. 241. 

§ Sch. 1. pt. ii. p. 51, Carv. ib., Cat.[?6. (where there is an illustration) 
Bal. p. 241. 

|| See XII., and a. n. 72 (p. 324). 

«[ Sch. 1. ib. Compare R. R. p. 240. 

** XI. (p. 113). 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 347 

"several short central prongs." "All" have " barbs * on the 77, 
outer sides." The Ked Men's "spears are frequently 35 to 
40 f. in length;* but, for all that, they handle them so cle- 
verly that their prey rarely escapes them. Of course this is 
only possible in such transparent f water as that of Lake 
Superior." J 

B, a. Sometimes fish are speared from a canoe, which is Day. 

spearing, 

gently paddled by an assistant. This is carried on usually in Summer, 
the morning," at which time the fish "are close in-shore, lying 
under the leaves and rushes." § 

b. In winter, a hole is cut in the ice with an aiskun, which is winter 
a stout iron chisel attached firmly to a pole. || The man lies 
down flat, covering " his head with his blanket," which is 
" supported by branches." In this position, he observes and 
spears the fish passing far beneath.^" 

C. Night- spearing was witnessed by Herr Kohl. " We mgu- 

spearing, 

found " — he writes ** — " the bays of St. George's Lake f f illumi- 
nated by numerous fires, j j ' Indians ' were engaged in spearing 
fish. Like the Letts, Finns, and Scandinavians," the Ojibwas 
"suspend in the bows" of their canoes "a fire-basket, which 
makes the water " — of itself, as Herr Kohl remarks, remarkably 
clear §§ — " transparent to a great depth." The " torch " || || is 
made of strips of birch-bark, which are bound together by a 
series of bands, that keep the torch together while the flame 
burns down. Behind the cresset is a board. 

* XI. [p. 113]. t a. n. 2G [p. 194]. 

% K. pp. 331, 3:9. § Sch. I. pt. ii. p. 53. 

|| XI. (p. 113). 

If Sch. I. pt. ii. p. 51 j cf. K. p. 328. 

** K. pp. 310, 311. 

tt In St. Mary's River. See III. f 11. g [p. 23], 

XX XI. (p. 113.) §§ Cf. (as before) a. n. 26 (p. 194). 

mi xi. [ P . us]. 



348 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

77. D. A cord* is used for more than one purpose. 

"For catching larger fish, they have a species of spear-head, 
which, on striking, comes loose from the pole, and is merely 
attached to it by a cord. The fish darts off, dragging the 
wooden bob after it, gradually becomes exhausted, and is cap- 
tured without difficulty." f 

Again, "the largest sturgeon generally he" in such currents 
as those of " the rapids of St. Mary's Kiver." "An assistant" 
" holds a cord fastened to the bottom of the spear, and corrects 
its movements in the flowing water. For this purpose, a small 
channel is cut from the main hole, where the spearer stands, 
through the ice and against the current. The other end of the 
line is held by a young fellow, who sits at the extremity of the 
channel, and moves the cord according to the orders and signals 
of the spearer. If the latter see a sturgeon coming up stream, 
and, as fish are wont to do, moving along first quick and then 
slow, and then stopping altogether, he tries to get his spear 
right over the fish's back, when he gives a thrust, and usually 
brings up the quivering fish. 
Decoy. E. " Sturgeon generally swim very deep, and, consequently, 

such an arrangement is required for their capture. Other fish, 
however, can be seduced nearer the surface, and are then speared 
with no difficulty. The " Eed Men " carve, for this purpose, 
small artificial fish of wood J or bone, which they let down as a 
bait. They " "call these little fish ' okeau? the English equiva- 
lent being ' decoy-fish.' § I saw several of them, very cleverly 
executed, § generally in the form of a small herring. Some 
were stained § light-blue, just like the real fish. They attach it 
to a long string, which is fastened to a piece of wood a foot and 

* XI. (p. 113). t K p. 331. 

X XI. (p. 112). § lb. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 349 

a half m length. It is weighted with a piece of lead, so that it 77. 
may sink perpendicularly in the water.* The fisherman, lying 
oyer the hole as in sturgeon-spearing, lets his okeau play round f 
the mouth of the fish, and tantalizes the poor wretch higher and 
higher, until he can easily spear it." \ 



78. 

The Darkness of Lake Hue on. § 

The " surface of Lake Huron exhibits the dark-blue, or blue- 
black, so characteristic of the ocean." || That of Lake Superior 
is " of a greenish cast,"^[ while the shallow waters of Lake Erie 
are of a paler green. 



7y. 

St. Clair. Kiver. and Feats.** 

At the head of St. Clair Eiver, on the Canadian side, is 
Sarnia, the terminus of the Grand Trunk Eailway. Lambton 
County, the district on the same side of the river, is famous for 
its petroleum-springs. Similar springs exist in Pennsylvania. 
At the foot of the river are the St. Clair Flats, formed by the 
mud brought down. They are "some 20 m. across." ff "In 



* See a. n. 20 [p. 188]. t XI. (p. 112). 

X K. pp. 329, 330. Cf. Sch.I. ib. § XIV. 1, 2 [pp, 145, 146]. 

|| F. and W. pt. i. p. 22. f C. p. 123. 

** XIV. 3. tt C. p. 21. 



350 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

79. most parts " they are " covered with only a foot or two of water," 
which, however, is " as green as that of Lake Erie, and not 
more turbid." * 



80. 
Names of West-Latjrentian Lakes. ' 

Lake Erie.f — Charlevoix J says that this lake is called 'Erie' 
from a people (nation) of that name, who were at one time 
established on its shores §, but were completely destroyed by 
the Iroquois. || He goes on to say that ' Erie ' is equivalent to 
* cat,' and that in some reports (relations) the people of that 
name are named ' the people (nation) of the cat.' He observes 
that they were so called, apparently, from their country abound- 
ing in those animals.^" 

He adds that some modern maps have given this lake the 
name of ' Conti,' but that this name has fared no better than 
some French names of Lakes Huron, Michigan, and Superior, 
which I shall mention presently .** 

Lake Huron. — The lake appears under this name in Char- 



* C.p. 21 

f On the storminess of this shallow lake (which we experienced), see (e. g.) 
Carv. p.' 168. 

% Ch. tome iii. p. 253. 

§ In his map, he says they inhabited the southern shore. 

|| See Intr. 

f This is, I need scarcely say, the wild cat (felisrvfa, or lynx rufus), 
whose fur, when dyed and prepared, is much valued in America, being found 
very suitable for cloaks, linings, and facings, on account of its softness and 
lightness. The animal is mentioned by Dablon as abounding near Mackinaw 
[see a. r. 72 (p. 328)]. 

** To the list of such names we may now add' La Nouvelle France,' which 
expired at the English conquest of Canada [see a. n. 45 (p. 244)]. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 351 

levoix's map. It is so called from the people* who inhabited ! 
its eastern shores. The name of ' Karegnondi' also is given in 
the Map of 1640 — 1680. t 

Lake Michigan. — In Jes., 1670 (p. 97), I find the aboriginal 
name of this lake, written ' AEachihiganing,' \ in Jes., 1671 
(p. 25), ' Mitchiganons.' Kohl§ writes this word 'IMitchiga- 
ming.'j In Charlevoix's map it is called '^Michigan,' as now. 
The French called it. from the Eed Men of that name, Lac des 
Illinois, || a name now borne by one of the United States. It 
was also given the name of Lac d' Orleans. >s ~ 

LaJce Ontario** — 'Lac des Iroquois' and 'Lac St. Louis,' 
appear, as names of this lake, in the map of 16-10 — 1680.ff 

Lake Simcoe.\ +— In Charlevoix's map this lake is called 'Lac 
Taronto.' Carver §§ (1778) writes the word ' Toronto.' || | " On 
the northwest parts of this lake" [Lake Ontario], — says he, — 
" and to the southeast of Lake Huron, is a tribe of Indians called 
Missisauges" piissi-sahgas*" 6- ], ''whose town is denominated 
1 Toronto ' from the lake on which it lies ; but they are not very 



* See Intr. 

t Carte du Canada ou NTouvelle France de ln40 a 1680 (Jes. II.). 

% The termination g is the suffix denoting the animate plural (lakes being 
regarded as animate). See a. n. 33 [p. 210]. 

§ K. p. 337. 

|| The name of this people was successively written ' Eriniwek,' ' Liniwek, 
1 Aliniwek,' 4 Iliniwek,' ' Ilinoiiets,' ' Ilinois.' See index of Jes. I. 

1f Ch. ib. 

** On this lake and its present name, see a. n. 1. 

tt Jes. II. 

XX On this lake and its present name, see a. n. 8. 

§§ Carv. p. 171. 

|| || In his map it is ' Toranto,' probably by misprint. 

TM[ a.n.2 [top of p. 176], a.n. 15 [p. 184, f. n.], a. n. 72 [p. 331, f. n.]. Since 
wruing the foot-note in p. 184, I have found the following in Sch. I. pt. i. 
p. 306:—" The tribe of the Missisagies lived first " [i. e. before they were on 
Lake Ontario] " at the river of that name " [marked in my map] east of 
BruceML.es. "The term consists of^m English plural in a added to the 
Algonquin phrase for ' a widemouthed river.' " We find them, in 1053, on the 



352 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

80. numerous." It strikes me that this passage gives us a clue to 
the origin of the name of the city of Toronto.* If the word 
1 Toronto ' means — as it does according to some — -' trees in the 
water/ * such a name would be peculiarly appropriate to Lake 
Simcoe from the character of its scenery.f The same name, 
after belonging to a "town" of the Missi-sahgas on that lake, 
would very naturally be given by them to that settlement, which 
Bouchette found on the site of the present city. J 

Lake Superior. — In the map of 1640 — 1680 § this lake is 
called ' Grand lac des Nadouessifs.' || Lac de Tracy, a French 
appellation, took no root.^f 



81, 

The ' Moons ' of the Eed Men.** 

" Some nations among" the Eed Men "reckon" — says Carver jf 
— "their years by moons J{, and make them consist of twelve 
synodical or lunar months, observing, when thirty moons have 
waned, to add a supernumerary one, which they term the lost 
moon." §8 



shores of Lake Ontario between Genesee and Niagara Rivers." Mrs. 
Jameson (p. 267) erroneously says that ' Missisagua,' as she writes it, means 
' the river with two mouths.' 

* a. n.2, (2.). 

t See I. 6, II. Mrs. Jameson (p. 313) calls Lake Simcoe a *' most beautifu 
piece of water." 

% See a. n. 2 [top of p. 176]. 

§ Jes. II. 

|| See a, n. 72 [pp. 325, 326], and a. n. 48 [p. 270]. 

If Ch. ib. 

** XIII. [p. 143], XIV. [p. 152], XV. [p. 1613. 

tt Carv.p. 250. 

XX So H. xxii. (p. 163). 

§§ " Th^y add every now and then a thirteenth (nameless) moon, in ord^r 
to get right with the sun again." (K. p. 120.) 



Mor 



[To face 'page 352. 



MEN. 



Carver's List. 
(Carv. p. 250.) 



February 
March 
April f 1 

May 
June 



July 

August 
Septemb ai< * 

October 
Novemb 
Decemfo 



rivers " (K 

3 « Becai 
with a firm 
Ob.). 

4 " Becau 
snow-shoes 

5 a. n. 2 
R XIV. 
< a. n. 24 

8 a. n.71 

9 IX. [p. 

io XI. [ W « 



The cold moon 13 
The snow moon 17 
The worm moon 18 
The moon of plants 

The moon of flowers 
The hot moon 

The buck moon 

The sturgeon 13 moon 20 
The corn moon 21 

The travelling moon 22 
The beaver moon 23 
The hunting moon 



i XIII. Q use more snow falls" in this month, than 
2 " Becau !ier " («&•)• 

se then " the worms quit their retreats 
of trees, wood, &c, where they have 
nemselves during the winter " {ib.). 

113, f.n.]. 
mse in this month they catch great 
that fish" (ib.). 
23Kuse they" then "gather in their Indian 



se they then travel to their winter 
aces (ib.). 

se the beavers then take shelter in their 
iring laid up their winter store (ib.). 



COMPARATIVE TABLE OF THE ' MOONS ' OF THE RED MEN. 



March . 


The moon of the snow-crust 


April . . 


The moon for breaking the 
snow-shoes ' 


May 


The flower moon 


June . . 


Strawberry moon 


July . . 


Baspberry 5 moon ' 


August . 


Whortleberry' moon 


September . 


The moon of the wild rice 8 


October . 


The moon of the falling leaf 9 


November 


The freezing moon 


December 


The moon of little spirits '» 



The moon of bright nights 



geese lay eggs 
The planting moon 



rheiTi,>s '■' al 
The harvest m 



The moon of plank 
The moon of flowers 



The buck moon 



V. [p. 148], XV. [p. 167]. 






APPENDIX-NOTES. 353 

The names of the several 'moons' remind one, for the most 81. 
part, of those established in France under the first republic. I 
give a comparative table of those which I have met with. 



82. 
From Lake Erie to the Niagara Sapid s.* 

It is about 21 m. from Lake Erie to the Niagara Eapids. 
The breadth of the river is, at first, generally about 2 m., but 
only 1800 f. at one point ;f it then varies, being now 1 m., now 
3 m. ; then, if one measure across Grand Island, it is 8 m.; 
below this it is 3 m. ; then it is 1 m., then 1 J m., then, at the 
Eapids, f ■m.J 

83. 

The Niagara Eapids. § 

It is rather less than 1 m. || from the head of the Eapids to 
the Falls. The river is here J m. wide,^[ I find its descent in 
this part variously estimated,— viz., as " about 50 £",** " 56 f.",f f 
" 57 f.", { J " nearly 60 f.", §§ and " about 80 f." || || 



* XIV. [p. 148] and XV. [pp. 159, 160]. 
f D. p. 207. % Br. p. 25. 

§ XIV. 5. (2.) [pp. 149, 150] ; XV. 2. [p. 160 j. 

|| Ly. Tr. vol. i. ch. ii., and most books: "more than 1 m." according to 
How. p. 122. 
f Br. ib. ** N. p. 51. * 

tf How. ib, tt A writer cited in D. p. 212. 

S§ N.p.ll. HII Ly.tfc 

A A 



354 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

84. 
Goat Island.* 

This island is about J m. long and \ m. broad.f Its area is 
gradually diminishing.:}; It is joined to the eastern shore by 
a bridge. It is called Groat Island from some goats having been 
put on it, to pasture, in 1770 ; it is sometimes called Iris Island, 
from the number of spray-bows § seen near it.|| Sir C. Lyell^ 
speaks of it as " the delightful island, where the solitude of the 
ancient forest is still unbroken." Mr. Howison ** says that 
" the luxuriance and verdure, which crown its banks, bespeak a 
paradise, while the wild flowers, that adorn them and are 
nourished by the spray of the cataract, possess a fragrance and a 
beauty altogether peculiar and exquisite." f f 

Visiting this island on the 11th and 12th of June, 1859, I 
saw flying through the tops of the trees a bird of very hand- 
some plumage, jj It was probably, I think, the Baltimore 

* XIV. 5. (4.) [p. 150]. f N. p. 28. 

t Mr. Howison (p. 118) says it "contains about 70 acres," and this is 
stated in N. ib. Sir C. Lyell (ib.), writing, in 1845, says it " has lost several 
acres in the last four years." 

§ a. n. 87. 

|| N. ib. " Ofttimes volumes of snow-white vapour, among which the 
prismatic colours appear with changeful lustre, float along the cliffs of the 
island " (How. p. 119). See XV. [p. 162]. 

f Ly. ib. 

** How. p. 119. 

ft Mr. Howison (p. 118) also speaks of it being "covered with fine 
timber." All remark, as we did, the singular luxuriance of Niagara vegeta- 
tion, and the beauty of the flowers that abound near the Falls. Herr Kohl 
(K. C. vol. ii. p. 177) was " told that the Falls filled the whole valley with 
refreshing moisture, and kept the vegetation fresh even under the summer- 
heats." See XIV., passim, and especially 5. (3.) [p. 150]; X V., passim, and 
especially p. 162. Professor Agassiz (C. p. 14) speaks of the fossils in the 
gravel [see a. n. 8ft], as <f contributing to the great luxuriance of the vegeta- 
tion." 

tt Mr. Howison (p. 114), speaking of his view of the Niagara River below 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 355 

Oriole, commonly called 'the Grold Kobin' (Oriolus Baltimorus 84. 
or Yphantes B.). 



85. 

The Niagara Falls. 

At the Falls,* the river is about f m. wide.f The Canadian, 
or ' Horse- shoe,' Fall divides the western shore of the river from 
Goat Island. It is 2,000 f.J wide, and 154 f. high.§ The 
average thickness of the sheet of falling water has been esti- 
mated as 14 £, |i that at the centre as 20 f.^[ In 1829 a ship 
drawing 18 f. water went over without striking the cliff.** 
" The volume of falling water " here is said to be " ten or twelve 
times thicker" than that at the ' American ' falls. ft The 
smaller of these divides Groat Island from Luna Island. J J It is 
240 f. wide.§§ The larger divides the latter island from the 
eastern shore of the river. It is 660 f. wide. Both are 163 £ 

high. 1 1 

the Falls, says that " beautiful birds fluttered around." See XV., especially 
p. 162. 

* XIV. 5. (4.) [p. 150], XV. 2. [p. 160]. f N. p. 8. 

X " 1,800 f." (Ly. ib.). 

§ " 149 f." (Encycl. Britann. 8th edn. vol.xvii. p. 605), 

H C. p. 15. 

H N. p. 22. Herr Kohl (K. C. vol. ii. p. 146) estimates it generally as 
" certainly not less than 30 f." 

** N. ib. ft K. C. ib. 

XX See a. n. 87. §§ N. pp. 15, 30. 

[||| N. p. 15. " 162 f." (Encycl. Britann. ib.) 



A A 2 



356 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

86. 
The Niagara Eiyee considered geologically.* 

It appears that the whole of this region at a very remote 
epoch slowly emerged from the ocean, that at a comparatively 
recent date it was submerged, and that it again slowly rose, 
with, in general, its present features. 

Patches of sand and gravel, which are found on bo+h shores 
as well as on the islands, and abound in fossils of such shells as 
now inhabit the river, show that it was at first a shallow stream 
as far as Queenston Heights, f where the great cataract, with 
twice the present altitude, originally stood, and that its breadth 
varied from 1 to 7 m., averaging 3 or 4. m. " Probably at that 
time it resembled the rapids above Goat Island. Afterwards 
the current" was accelerated, "owing probably to the opening 
of fissures, which lowered the level of Lake Erie." Hence "the 
two present channels were cut down to the rock, and the river 
was reduced to its present level." J 

The strata traversed by the Niagara Eiver are all Upper- 
Silurian. The North- American rocks of this series have been 
given by the geologists of the State of New York, from localities 
in that State, the names of Oneida, Medina, Clinton, Niagara, 
Onondaga, § and Helderberg. § As these strata ' dip ' southward 
25 f. in a mile, the character of the cataract has changed, and 
will change in the course of its recession, according to their com- 
parative hardness. When the soft Medina-sandstone was at the 

* XIV. 4 ; 5, (5.), (6.) [pp. 151, 152] : XV. 3, (1.), (4.) [pp. 160, 161, 170]. 
In composing this note, I have followed, especially, Ag. (C. ib.), and Ly. {ib,). 
The data of the former are derived from Professor Jas. Hall's Geological 
Survey of the State of New York. 

+ a. n. 94. % Ag., C. ib. 

§ See p. 317. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 357 

edge and the harder Oneida-grit below, the cataract must have 86. 
been rather a rapid than a fall. Again, when, as at Queenston 
Heights, the Clinton group was at the edge and the Medina 
below, it was, as now, perpendicular. The cliff, over which the 
water falls at present, belongs to the Niagara group. The upper 
half is limestone, the lawer shale. The latter is worn away by 
the spray blown against it. Thus, not only is a cavern* formed 
beneath, but great masses of the limestone often tumble. When, 
as will happen 2 m. farther back, the shale comes to the surface, 
the fall will cease to be perpendicular. Doubtless, its altitude 
was greatest, when it began its existence at Queenston Heights. 
" At the Devil's Holef there are indications of a lateral fall, 
probably similar to what is now called the American Fall." j 
At the Whirlpool f the cataract was, probably, larger than it has 
been elsewhere, and stationary during a longer time. With 
regard to the rate of its recession, — " Mr. Bakewell calculated, 
that, in the forty years preceding 1830," it "had been going 
back about a yard annually; but" Sir C. Lyell thinks " that one 
foot a year would be a much more probable conjecture; in which 
case 35,000 years would have been required for" its " retreat from 
Queenston, if we could assume that the retrograde movement 
had been uniform throughout." But, " at every step, the height 
of the precipice, the hardness of the materials at its base, and 
the quantity of fallen matter to be removed, must have varied. 
At some points it may have receded much faster than at present, 
at others much slower." § 

* XIV. [p. 152]. t See a. n. 93. 

t Ag. ib. § Ly. ib. 



A A 3 



35$ APPENDIX-NOTES. 

87. 

The Spray Bows of Niagara.* 

' ' Eainbows ' ' — writes Herr Kohl f — "are admire d ' every- 
where ; but they all grow pale before the brilliant iris of 
Niagara." The solar bow is always visible, when the sun shines 
on the Falls. The lunar bow is visible once a month, when 
the moon is full, and sufficiently high in the heavens. J 



The Spirit of the Sun.§ 

Elliot || says that the Massachusetts ' Indians ' of his time had 
"a sun-god." Carver^" says that an ' Indian' chief, before 
going forth against his foes, "fixes his eyes on the sun, and 
pays his adorations to the Great Spirit." Schoolcraft** says, 
that, in the symbolic tablets of the meeda and the wahbahno,ff 
" the sun is employed as the symbol of the Great Spirit." He Jf 
mentions hymns to the sun, which were sung by a female 
jossakeed. He observes, §§ that, in the symbols of the Lap- 
landers, || || whose magic arts and ceremonies remarkably coincide 

* XIV. [p 151] ; XV. [pp. 162, 164]. f K, C. vol. ii. p. 161. 

% Luna Island (see XV. [p. 160], and a. n. 85) is "so called, because it is 
the best point " for viewing " the lunar bow " ( N. p. 29). 

§ III. [p. 22] ; V. [p. 39]; XIV. [p. 146] ; XV. [pp. 164, 165, 166]. 

|| Sch. I. pt. i. p. 286. On Elliot,— see a. n. 61 [p. 292], and the Index of 
Abbreviations. 

1[ Carv. p. 304. ** lb. p. 373. 

tt See a. n. 75. \% lb. p. 400. 

§§ lb. p. 426. 

|| || He refers to the work on Lapland by John Scheffer, a Professor in the 
University of Upsal (London, 1701). 



APPENDIX-XOTES. 359 

with those of the Eed Men,* the sun generally occupies the 88. 
centre of the druni,f and bears the " figure of a man's head 
rayed." In the great dream J of his youth, which an old Eed 
Man related to Herr Kohl,§ the chief part, is played by "the 
Sun-Spirit," whose "white locks" "shone like silver." 

I cannot but think that it is not the Eed Men themselves, 
but merely Captain Carver and Dr. Schoolcraft, who consider 
that the Great Spirit is addressed through the sun. The notion 
reminds one of Euhemerus' rationalizing views of the mythology 
of the ancient Greeks. 



89. 

The Spirits of Niagaea.|| 

Mr. Parkman,^ speaking of the myths of the Eed Men, says 
that " under the Falls of Niagara dwelt the Spirit of the 
Thunder with his brood of giant sons, and the Iroquois trembled 
in their villages, when, amid the blackening shadows of the 
storm, they heard his deep shout roll along the firmament." 
Afterwards** he speaks of " the mighty giant, the G-od of the 
Thunder, who made his home among the caverns beneath the 
cataract of Niagara," 

* lb. p. 425. f See a. n. 75." 

+ a. n. 74. § K. pp. 206—209. 

I! XIV. [p. 152]. \ P.p. 13. 
** P. p. 34. 



360 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

90. 
From the Falls to the Suspension-Bridge.* 

The river-cliffs, both in this part and in the remaining part of 
the gorge (or, as it would be called in the Isle of "Wight, chine) 
below the Falls, are 300 f. high and upwards, including, gene- 
rally, a talus. 

With regard to the depth of the river,— the hole below the 
Horse-shoe Fall defies sounding, the rest is, for the most part, 
240 f. deep.f 

With regard to width, — -just below all the Falls it is about 
1500 f. ; 1 J m. lower down, it is about 750 f. ; 200 yards lower, 
it is about 1600 f. ; and this is the width in the rest of the gorge, ;£ 
except at the Suspension Bridge ||, and at the rapids below the 
Whirlpool. § 

To a distance of 2 m. below the Falls, the water is smooth 
enough to admit of a steamer passing up and down. She is 
named The Maid of the Mist, from her going into the very 
thick of the spray of the Falls. 



* XIV. 5.(7.) [p. 153]; XV. 2., and, especially, 3. (3.) [p. 169] (4.) [''peace," 
p. 170; "roll," p. 171]. 
f K. C. vol> ii. pp. 146, 118. % lb. p. 164. 

§ See a. n. 93. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 36 1 

91. 

The Ruby-throated Humming-Bird 

{TROCHILUS COLUBBIS)* 

(1.) Range. 
(2.) Description. 

A. Male. 

B. Female. 

C. Young. 
(3.) Habits. 

' (1.) Humming-birds are peculiar to the New "World. In the range. 
tropics there are numerous species of them. In the north there 
are but two, — the Trochilus rufus, and the Trochilus colnbris. 
The former is found on the western coast, as far north as 
lat. 61°.f The latter — the subject of this note — ranges " from 
10° to 50°, north lat., on the eastern side of the continent." \ 
It "is pre-eminently a migratory species." It arrives in the 
Southern States in March, and gradually passes northward. It 
reaches the Niagara Falls in May. It breeds even in the ter- 
ritories of the Hudson's Bay Company, and often raises two 
broods a year. About the middle of September, it goes ' down 
south', to winter in Mexico and Guatemala. § 

(2.) A. "With regard to the male, — " the whole of the back," the descrip- 
tion. 
"upper part of the neck," the "flanks," the "tail-coverts, and" Male - 

the "two middle tail feathers" are "of a rich golden green ;"|| 



* XV. [pp. 163-168]. t G. p. 163. 

X Gou., vol. iii. plate 131 (part xv.). Mr. Hind observed it at a place 
about lat. 50°, long. 98°, on the 19th of June, 1858 (Hi. vol. i. p. 284). 

§ Gou. ib. 

|| XV. [pp. 163, 164]. — "The upper parts of its delicate body are of re- 
splendent changing green " (Aud.) . . . "the back, wings, and tail of the 
finest pale-green ; and small specks of gold are scattered, with inexpressible 



362 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

91 the " wings and tail" are "purplish brown;" the " under sur- 
face of the body" is "white, tinged with green;" the "throat" 
is ruby-red, changing, according to the position in which it is 
viewed, from deep black to fiery crimson or burning orange ;" * 
the " bill, eyes, legs, and feet are black," f On measurement of 
the figure (in Mr. Gould's plate), which is " of the size of life," 
I find him about 3 j- inches long. 

%u. B. " The female resembles the male in her general plumage, 
but is destitute of any brilliancy on the throat, and has the tail 
tipped with white.f On measurement of the figure, I find her 
about 3§ inches by 3^- (she being on wing). 

w- C. " The young birds of both sexes, during the first season, 

have the tail tipped with white, and the whole of the under 
surface dull white. The ornamental feathers on the throat of 
the young males begin to appear in the month of September 
(Wilson)." f 

its. (3.) My description of the habits of this bird is founded on 
personal observation J, and the similitudes are my own. Since the 
composition of my poem, I have found myself amply borne out by 
the accounts of Audubon, Wilson, Gould, Gosse, and Sir Charles 
Lyell. Audubon says that " the ethereal motions of" the bird's 



grace, over the whole" (Carv. p. 475). "The body glitters in the sun with 
green and gold " (G. p. 163) ..." the head and body brilliant with green and 
gold plumage " (Ly. Tr. vol. ii. p. 227) ..." the glossy golden green of his 
back"(Wil.). 

* XV. [pp. 164, 165].—" Its gorgeous throat, in beauty and brilliancy, 
baffles all competition. Now it glows with a fiery huej and, again, it is 
changed to the deepest velvet-black" (Aud.). "The throat is just like a 
glowing coal of fire " (G. ib.). ..." the fire of its throat dazzling in the sun " 
(Wil.). 

t Gou. ib. 

X At Toronto, these birds came now and then to the flowers in the garden 
of my next neighbour, but were to be seen mostly on the chestnut-trees (cf. 
Gou. ib., Ly. 2nd vis. vol. ii p. 330) in the College Avenue. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 363 

" pinions appear to fan the flower." * Sir C. Lyellf remarked that 91. 
" the flower was evidently bent down slightly, as if the bird rested 
its bill upon it, to aid its wings in supporting its body in the 
air, or to steady it." J Audubon goes on to say that it "sips " 
" small portion of" the " liquid honey." § The same great 
naturalist observes that " it moves from one flower to another, 
like a gleam of light;" || Sir C. Lyell^f remarked, that, "when 
they darted away, they seemed to emit a flash of bright 
colour." || Wilson says of one, that it " shot off like a meteor."** 
The same great naturalist writes, that " the flight of the hum- 
ming-bird from flower to flower greatly resembles that of a bee, 
but is much more rapid." ** Mr. Gould speaks of its " now and 
then perching" in a "shady retreat" "to preen its wings," 
and again, in another passage, of its " ever and anon retiring to 
some shady branches to plume" itself:** the same habit is 
noticed by Sir C. Lyell,^" and, more than once, by "Wilson. 
" They are" — writes Audubon — " particularly fond of spreading 
one wing at a time, and passing each of the quill-feathers through 
their bill in its entire length ; when, if the sun be shining, the 
wing thus plumed is rendered extremely transparent and 
light." ft Wilson put to the test of a practical experiment 
their need "of the animating influence of the sunbeams." ft 

* XV. [p. 163]. t Ly. ib. 

% XV. [pp. 163, 164]. § XV. [p. 163]. 

|| XV. [pp. 166, 167]. ' IT Ly. Tr. ib. 

** XV. [p. 166]. tt XV. [pp, 165, 166]. 



364 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

92. 
The Wild Vines of North America.* 

North America possesses many indigenous species of the vine.f 
They do not range farther north than the limit of European 
vin e -culture ; but they flourish there in a colder climate.]: 
Some native species are successfully domesticated in Canada, 
and, with sugar, supply a good wine.§ 

The vine is associated with the "White Man's discovery of 
North America. The Northmen are said to have named the 
country ]| 'the good vine-land' {Vinland it goda), and certain it 
is that Jacques Cartier, ascending the St. Lawrence in the autumn 
of 1535, called the large island below Quebec the Isle of Bacchus 
on account of the abundance of grapes thereof 



93. 

From the Suspension-Bridge 
to qljeenston heights.** 

About 2 \ m. below the Falls, the gorge is but 800 f. wide, 

* XIV. [p. 153], XV. [p. 165]. 

t There are three on Goat Island (Ag., C. p. 21). 

% Ag., C. p. 182. '• The vine is found in the forests all up the Ottawa, a 
river frozen five months in the year." (K. C. vol. i. p. 300.) 

§ St. pp. 68—73,211, 212. 

|| Robertson's argument against the truth of this discovery, on the ground 
that the vine has not been found in Labrador, was met by its discovery on 
Hudson's Bay: but the 'Vinland' of the Northmen is now placed at Massa- , 
chusetts and Rhode Island, where the best species abound. See War. vol. i., 
Sch. I. pt. i. p. 106. 

IT See K. C, vol. i. pp. 146, 300. As the Island of Orleans, it is now cele- 
brated for its plums. 

** XIV. 5. (8.), (9.), (10.) [p. 154]; XV. 3. (3.) [p. 170], (4.) ["war;" 
" whirl, and swirl, and roar "]. 



APPEISIDIX-KOTES. 365 

being half its general breadth. This narrow part, which extends 93. 
some 600 f., has been seized on for the site of a suspension-bridge. 
On account of the depth of the river, * " the erection of piers was 
out of the question ;" on account of its "fearful velocity" here, 
"there could be no bridge of boats, — nay, not even could a 
small boat be sent across, carrying the first rope to begin the 
connection. Paper-kites were prepared, and, when the wind 
was fair, sent across, loaded with thin wires." What followed 
will be at once conjectured. The thin wires again formed a basis 
for ropes, men and materials were transmitted in a basket, and, 
finally, the gorge was spanned with a magnificent bridge, of which 
the upper story bears railway trains, the lower carriages, horse- 
men, and foot-passengers.f 

Just below this bridge, the river is whirled over black rocks, 
which contrast well with its white foam.J: 

About 1 m. below it, the ravine makes a turn nearly at 
right angles. Here the water, after rushing violently against 
the western cliff, sweeps round and round in a circular basin, 
which it has excavated. This basin, termed ' the Whirlpool/ is 
about 3000 f. in diameter. § 

Beneath the Whirlpool there is a roaring rapid, at which the 
opposite cliffs are but "400 f. asunder." || 

About J m. below, on the eastern side, is •' the Devil's Hole/ 
It is just such a recess in the cliff as would in the Isle of Wight 
be termed a ' chine.' It is between 100 and 200 f. deep. 



* Herr Kohl (K. C. vol. ii. p. 165) says that "the river here is almost as 
deep as it is broad." I much doubt his having any authority for this. 

t K C.ib. 

% XIV. 5. (8.) [p. 154] ; XV. [" whirl ; " pp. 170, 1713. 

§ XIV. 5. (9.) [p. 154] ; XV. ["swirl," pp, 170, 171]. 

|| XIV. 5. (10.) [p. 154]; XV. ["passage strait," &c, p. 170; "roar," 
p. 171]. 



366 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

93. On the 13th of September, 1763, a British convoy, going from 
Fort Schlosser* to Fort Niagara, f was waylaid here by some Eed 
Men, chiefly Sennekahs;| on their sudden yells, waggons, 
horses, and men were precipitated ; and a little stream, which 
falls at the head of the cut de sac, soon ran red with the blood of 
nearly all the survivors of the war-cry. Its name, 'Bloody 
Eun', is a significant memorial of the event. 

The descent of the Niagara Kiver between the Falls and 
Queenston is no less than 100 f., nearly all of it lying below the 
Suspension-Bridge. 

94. 

Queenston Heights. § 

' Queenston Heights,' or * Queenston Mountain,' || is the name 
of a part of that ridge, which I have already^ mentioned as 
extending round great part of Lake Ontario.** It forms the 
backbone of the Niagara isthmus, and, where cloven by the 
river, is equidistant between the Falls and Lake Ontario, being 
about 7 m. from both. ft Its northern side is here a steep 



* Fort Schlosser was built, as a trading-post, by La Salle [cf. a. n. 97]. It 
was from its site, now called ' Schlosser's Landing ', that Colonel (afterwards 
Sir Allan) McNab, by orders from Sir Francis Bond Head, the then Lieu- 
tenant-Governor of Upper Canada, set fire to the Caroline, cut her adrift, and 
sent her down over the Falls (2 m, below), in the night of Dec. 29, 1837. 
The steamer was engaged in carrying ' sympathizers ' and provisions to the 
Canadian insurgents, who had taken possession of Navy Island, which lies 
just below Grand Island, and comprises 304 acres. 

t See a. n. 97. 

t See Intr. 

§ XIV. 5. (11.), 6. (2.) [pp. 155, 156]. || How. p. 102. 

f See a. n. 6. ** a. n. 1. 

tt The following, in Br. p. 25, is altogether wrong: — " Queenston is about 
9 m. from the Falls, and about 20 m. from Lake Erie." 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 367 

escarpment, at the foot of which is the village of Queenston.* 94. 
The highest ground on this part of it is 345 f. above Lake 
Ontario: the top of the river cliffs is a few feet lower. It 
stretches eastward as far as Eo Chester. 

A similar ridge runs 120 m. along the southern side of Lake 
Erie.f 

95. 

Sir Isaac Brock, 
and the Battle of Queenston. J 

Major-G-eneral Sir Isaac Brock, K.B., was of a respectable 
Guernsey family, and had seen much service in Europe. On 
the 30th of September, 1811, Mr. Francis Gore, Lieutenant- 
Governor of Upper Canada, returning to England on leave of 
absence, left him in the position of Provisional Lieutenant- 
Governor and Commander of the Forces in that Province. On 
August 16, 1812, Hull, the 'American' general, surrendered the 
fortified town of Detroit, which was the key to the peninsula 
between Lakes Michigan and Huron, and with it his whole 
army, amounting to 2,800 men, to Brock's little force, which 
consisted of 330 British soldiers, 400 Canadian militia-men, 
and 600 'Indians.' However, on the 13th of October an 
1 American ' force crossed at Queenston. Brock hurried up from 
Fort George, which stood about 7 m. north, on the western side 
of the river. He put himself at the head of but two companies, 
leaving the rest of his forces to follow. § His ardour and in- 
oautiousness caused the untimely sacrifice of his valuable life, 

* See a. n. 97. t See p. 320. 

X XIV. [p. 155]. § Br. p. 239. 



368 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

95. and was a great disaster to the British arms.* He was at the 
foot of the Heights, when he was shot by some ' Americans ' 
above. He had not completed his 43rd year. 

Sir Isaac Brock had shone in the cabinet, as well as in the 
field. He had been singularly popular among the Canadians, 
while he was regarded with veneration by the Ked Men. After 
his death, he was " styled * the Hero of Upper Canada \ " f 
He was killed early in the day. Major-Greneral Sheaffe succeeded 
to the command. The invaders were dislodged from their strong 
position; and their loss, in killed, wounded, and prisoners, 
amounted to at least 1000 men. j " They were so warmly pressed 
by" the Anglo-Canadian "troops and the 'Indians', and had so 
little prospect of obtaining quarter from the latter, that a great 
number wildly flung themselves over the steep, and tried to save 
their lives by catching hold of the trees upon it ; but many " were 
frightfully" mangled "by the rocks, and others, who reached 
the river, perished in their attempts to swim across it. Several, 
who had dropped among the cliffs without receiving any injury, 
were afterwards killed by falling upon their own bayonets, while 
leaping from one spot to another." § 



Brock's Monument, 
and the Prospect from it. || 

A monument was erected to Brock on the Queenston Heights 

* How. p. 91. t How. pp. 90, 91 ; Ha. p. 73 ; Br. p. 239. 

% So says D. (p. 204), who always makes the best possible of the fortunes 
of the ' Americans.' \ How. p. 88. 

||^ XIV. [pp. 155, 156]. My statistics in this note are obtained from D« ib. 
and N. p. 45. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 369 

in 1826, but blown up in 1840 by a person, who, it is said, was 96. 
concerned in the insurrection of 1837 — 1838. 

The present monument was commenced in 1853 and com- 
pleted in 1856. It cost £10,000 sterling. It is composed of 
freestone quarried in the neighbourhood. Its base is 40 f. square 
and 35 f.* high. Above is a tablet 35 f. high, with historical 
devices on the four sides. 'This is succeeded by a fluted shaft, 
about 100 f.f high, 30 f. in circumference, and surmounted by a 
Corinthian capital, on which stands a colossal statue, 18 £ high, 
of General Brock, telescope in hand.j The total height is 185 f. 
The monument is built over the remains of General Brock and 
his aide-de-camp Colonel John M'Donald, who died of wounds 
received in the battle. It is surrounded by a massive stone 
wall, 80 f. square, and adorned, at the corners, with trophies 
27 f. high. It is ascended by a spiral staircase. 

The view from the top is "most gorgeous" § and "very ex- 
tensive." || At one's feet is the lower part of the Niagara Eiver,^f 
with " the fertile and well-cultivated " ** tracts on both sides of 
it. On the right of the mouth of the river, — stretches the well- 
wooded and much-indented shore of Lake Ontario. On its left, 
■ — gracefully curves that deep recess of the lake, at the head of 
which is the city of Hamilton ; and the coast view includes the 
cliffs east of Toronto, called ' the Toronto highlands.' Between 
the two coasts, — the horizon is bounded by the waters of the 
huge lake.tt 

* " 30 f." (N. ih.). f "75 f." (N. ib.). 

t XIV. [p. 155]. § N. ib. 

H Br. p. 240 ..." the finest and most extensive that Upper Canada 
affords" (How. p. 102). 

% a. n. 97. ** Br. ib. 

ft The above outlines of the view are from my own observation (cf. XIV. 
[p. 15G]). Eulogistic sketches of it may be found in Br. {ib ) and How. (pp. Sfi, 
102). 

B B 



370 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

97. 
From Queenston Heights to Lake Ontario.* 

In the 7 m.f comprised by this part of the river, its descent is 
but 4 f.,| and it is navigable. The cliffs are only 30 or 40 f. 
high : the trees on them are fewer and smaller than in the deep 
gorge higher up, but their green forms a pleasant contrast with 
the ruddiness of the cliff and clay above it. § The land on both 
sides is flat, fertile, and well-cultivated. || The length of Queen- 
ston suspension-bridge is 1045 f. At its mouth, the river is 
about | m. wide. Here, on the western side, is the town of 
Niagara (formerly Newark ^f ), on the eastern is Fort Niagara. 
The former was burnt by the 'Americans' on the 12th of 
December, 1813. The latter began its existence in 1679, as a 
palisaded enclosure under the directions of La Salle ; ** it was 
taken by the British, under Sir W. Johnson, ft in 1759 ; it was 
given up to the United States in 1796, surprised by the Anglo- 
Canadians in 1813, and restored to the United States in 1815. J J 

98. 

The Thousand Islands. §§ 

A charming labyrinth of islands, — which are of every imagina- 
ble size, shape, and appearance, — extends some 50 m. below Lake 
Ontario. It is sometimes, as a part of the river St. Lawrence 

* XIV. [p. 156] ; XV. 4. [p. 171]- 

t " . . . about 15 m." [[erroneously] (K. C. vol.ii. p, 117). 
% Ly. Tr. vol. i. ch. ii. 

§ XV. ["brave banks," p. 171]. The Red Man would be particularly 
prone to admire them. See p. 343, f. n. 
|| XIV. 6. (1.), (2.), (3.), (4.) [p. 150] ; XV. 4. [p. 171]. 
1T See a. n. 2. [pp. 175, 170]. ** See pp. 325, 330. 

tt See p. 335. %% See p. 336. 

§§ XIV. [p. 157]; XV. [p. 172]. 



APPENDIX-NOTES. 371 

called ' the Thousand Islands,' sometimes, being viewed as one 98. 
of the lakes, ' the Lake of the Thousand Islands.' The 
boundary-commissioners found the actual number of the islands 
to be 1692.* The breadth of water is 12 m. at their beginning, 
2 m. at their end. 

99. 

The St. Lawrence KAPiDs.f 

There are eight rapids in the St. Lawrence, j The first seven 
are of sufficient importance to need the construction of canals 
for ascending steamers, some, indeed, being so dangerous as to 
require four men at the wheel and two at the tiller ; the first of 
the seven is 66 m. below Lake Ontario, the last about 180 m. 
(just above Montreal). The eighth is 305 m. below that lake 
(45 m. above Quebec). 

100. 

The Mouth of the St. La whence. 

About 270 m. below Lake Ontario is the point reached by the 
highest tides. About 320 m. down, the shores of the water, 
hitherto generally low, become from 60 to 80 f. high, and 
almost perpendicular : 350 m. down is Cape Diamond, — a fine 
bluff, which is 350 f. high, and is crested with the fortress of 
Quebec ; opposite it is Point Levi, — a height rather lower, and 
rather less prominent. § After a break on the northern side, — 

* B. vol. i. p. 156. t XIV. [p. 157]. 

J From the head of Lake Erie to the Atlantic Ocean, the main chain of 
the Laurentian waters stretches in a north-easterly direction. 

§ XIV. [p. 157]. Cape Diamond is so called from the little * diamonds' 
picked up on it. We found some on it, near "Wolfe's monument, on the site 
of his victory and death. 

B B 2 



372 APPENDIX-NOTES. 

X00. caused by the valley of the St. Charles, a tributary that flows 
in just below Quebec, — the shores of the estuary, from Cape 
Diamond downward, are lined with lofty eminences; but of 
these the northern are by far the more striking, and rear 
themselves close to the water. Beginning about 10 m. below 
Quebec, they rise between 2000 and 3000 f. high, towering 
inland as 'Les Eboulemens', and throwing out majestic head- 
lands. About 130 m. below the fortress-city, they are cloven by 
the deep,* darkf Saguenay. } Here the estuary has gradually 
attained the width of 20 m. After having opened out to that 
of 35 m., it is contracted, by a northern promontory, to that of 
24 m. : but here, 300 m. below Quebec, it expands into a gulf 
which measures 240 m. from west to east, and 300 m. from 
north to south. Above this magnificent body of water stretch 
" the mountains of the northern shore, having their snow-capt 
crests elevated to a vast height." § The Gulf of St. Lawrence 
has three communications with the Atlantic Ocean. The width 
of the southernmost, which divides the peninsula of Nova Scotia 
from Cape Breton Island, is but | m.; that of the channel 
between Cape Breton Island and Newfoundland is 48 m. ; that 
of the Strait of Belle Isle, || which separates Newfoundland from 
Labrador, is 10 m. This last is passed through, in the summer- 
months, by the steamers, which ply between Quebec and Liver- 
pool; but icebergs are often met with.^f In the winter-months, 
these steamers run to Portland, a town in the State of Maine. 

* The depth of this river is, for the most part, 145 fms. in the centre, 100 
fms. at the sides. In one reces«, it is no less than H rn., while the cliff rises 
1500 f. above this stupendous hollow. In another, it is l£m. If the bed of the 
St. Lawrence were laid dry, there would still be 100 fms. of water in the 
Saguenay. The width of the latter is from § m. to 2 m. (Bayfield). 

t See p. 247, f. n. % On the word, see pp. 211 (f. n.) and 184. 

§ Mart. p. 76: cf. XV. [p. 172]. 

ji So called from an island (21 m. round) at its north-eastern end. 

M VI. [p. 49]; XV. [p. 172]. 



SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 



Note to I. 6, 10, 11, 12. 

The Beafty of Lake Smcoe.* 

Mrs. Jameson f calls Lake Simcoe a "'most beautiful piece of 
water." 



The Beauty or Lake Kootchi-tchlng. 

"If" — writes Mrs. Jameson \ — " I had not exhausted all my 
superlatives of delight, I could be eloquent on the charms of 
this exquisite little lake."§ 

Suppl. to a. n. 11 [p. 181]. 

The Name of Lake Kootchi-tching. 

Mrs. Jameson ]| writes "Lake Cuchuching." I do not now 
think it possible that the last syllable of this word has any 

* See, on its present name, a. n. 8, on former names a. n. 80, and its 
suppl. 

t Ja.p. 313. X Ja. p. 312. 

§...'• and "—she continues—" the wild beauty of the rapids of the River 
Severn." 

Ii J a. ib. 

B B 3 



374 SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 

affinity to -gahming (= ' waters ') and its kindred. Most likely 
we have here the termination {-ing or -ong) which denotes 
locality.* This is all that I would venture to say about the 
word. 

Suppl. to a.n.12 [>. 182]. 

The word ' Penetanguishene.' 

This place is so called " from a high sand-bank, which is con- 
tinually crumbling away. The name signifies ' Look ! it is 
falling sand.' " f 

Note to I. [p. 9] and XV. [p. 167]. 

The Lightning-Bug or Fire-Fly. 

Under this head, Carver j: writes in a way that reminds one of 
Herodotus. In the course of his quaint account of the insect, 
he says that it is " about the size of a bee, but of the beetle 
kind," and that the fitfulness § of its phosphoric light (which is 
placed, chiefly, at the junction of the thorax and the dbdomen\) 
seems to be caused by the expansion and contraction of its 
luminous under-wings. He amusingly observes that these in- 
sects "seem to be sensible of the power they are possessed of, 
and to know the most suitable time for exerting it ; as in a very 
dark night ^f they are much more numerous than" in other 
nights. He also says that " they are only seen during June, 



* See p. 307, f. n. t Ja. p. 307. 

% Carv.p. 491. § I. [p. 9]. 

il liegne Animal, t. iv. p. 445, note. Cf. Kouvelles Annates du Mus. d'Hist. 
Nat., t. ii. p. 66; and Zoological Journal, vol. iii. p. 37 ( J. 
f XV. [p. 167]. 



SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 375 

July, and August," and " chiefly in low swampy land," the latter 
of which statements I can confirm from my own observation.* 

I often saw them on the wing ; and I saw one crawling on 
the wood that lay on the ' American ' wharf at Saut Ste. Marie.f 

Suppl. to a. n. 20, (2.), A. 
The word ' Mahnitoolin.' 

Assikinack, — though " a full-blood ' Indian ', and a son of 
one of the chiefs of the Odahwas settled on the island" } of this 
name, — is quite wrong in thinking that ' Mahnitoolin ' § is a 
contraction of ' Mahnitoo Island.' The word is much older than 
the English conquest of Canada : Charlevoix || calls the island 
'Manatoualin'. Mrs. Jameson ^f writes thus: — " The word 
' Manitoolin ' is a corruption, or Frenchification, of the ' Indian ' 
' Manitoawahning ', which signifies ' the dwelling of spirits.' " 
It seems to me that this is, in all probability, substantially right. 
The appearance of the letter * 1 ' (which does not belong to the 
Ojibwa and Odahwa dialects **) indicates that the word is the 
result of the French mutilation of some Indian word.ff Nor is 
the disappearance of the ' w ' in ' Manitoawahning ' any diffi- 
culty : Heckewelder observed that this letter has, in the Algon- 
quin dialects, a whistled sound ; and this sound is " easily 



* For instance, they were to be seen near my own residence [see p. 2, f. n.]. 

t See a. n. 28, (2.). 

X From the footnote of tbe editor of The Canadian Journal, at the begin- 
ning of Assik. l. See Index of Authorities. 

§ In the French, the word is written * Manitoulin.' 

|| Ch. t. iii. p. 283. If Ja - P- 2 73. 

** See p. 188. 

ft Thus, I apprehend, ' Alimipegon' (Ch. t. iii. p. 281), 'Alempigon ' (Sch. 
I. pt. iii. p. 524), and ' Allanipegon ' (Carv. p. 137), are possibly French 
corruptions of ■ Neepigon' [a. n. 69]t 

B B 4 



376 SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 

dropped, when aboriginal words are pronounced by the vocal 
organs of Europeans."* Mrs. Jameson, however, does not ap- 
pear to have troubled herself to account for such a metamor- 
phosis. Nor was she aware that the word ' Mahnitoo-wahning ' 
(= 'spirit -dwelling') was originally applied, not to the group 
of islands, nor even to the greatest of them, but to a deep hole 
in "a bay toward the south-east end of" Great Mahnitoolin 
Island, because this hole was supposed to be the abode of a 
spirit.f So Martin, f who is followed by Warburton and others, 
interprets the word as equivalent to ' sacred ', carelessly taking § 
the word to be the same as ' mahnitoo ' ( = ' spirit '), the appel- 
lation of several islands in Lakes Superior and Michigan. |j 

I have found the word successively written ' Manatoualin ' 
(Ch. ib.\ 'Manataulin' (Carv. p. 144), and ' Manatouline ' (Sch. 
I. pt. iii. p. 526). It is commonly written, as by Martin, ' Mani- 
toulin', which is, be it remembered, a French word, and pro- 
nounced ' Mahnitoolin.' 



Suppl. to a. n. 21 [p. 189]. 

La Cloche, 

" The island of La Cloche " — writes Dr. Bigsby ^f — " is so called 
from some of its rocks ringing like a bell, on being struck. This 

* Brunovicns, Hist. Mag., Jan. 1861. The Rev. S. T. Rand, speaking at 
Halifax, has recently said that " They call the Eastern tribes ' WoUnakie\ 
Wob'n [Elliot (El.) writes waban: see p. 344], in both Micmac " [see p. 269, 
f. n.] " and Ojibway, meaning * the dawn ', and hence 'the east ' " (]0th Beporl 
of the Micmac Missionary Society, p. 30) : the same word has been usually 
written by Europeans ' Abenaki' or ' AUnaki ' [aki is = ' land ']. 

t Seep. 188. t Mart. p. 116. 

§ lb. f. n. 

|| See X. (p. 85), and p. 237 (especially f. n.). 

«T Bigs. vol. ii. p. 105. 



SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 377 

particularly applies to one loose basaltic mass, about 3 yds. 
square. " 

SuppL to a. n. 23. 

The Wild Kaspberries of the Lake-Country. 

They are, — writes Mrs. Jameson,* — " as fine, and large, and 
abundant as any I have seen in" English "gardens." Of the 
same fruit Mr. Gosse f writes thus : — " I think it is the most 
delicious of our" [i. e. the Canadian] " native fruits :" it is " fully 
equal, if not superior, to the garden-raspberry of England, — an 
unusual thing, for- the advantage is almost universally on the 
side of the cultivated fruit." 

Note to IV. 2, and suppl. to «. n. 30. 

The Entrance into Lae3) Superior froat below. 

" It has been observed by travellers " — says Carver J — '-that 
the entrance into Lake Superior from" St. Mary's Kiver " affords 
one of the most pleasing prospects in the world." The following 
is taken from Mr. Brown's § description, which is more minute 
than that from which the foregoing is extracted :—" From the 
heights of Gros Cap, composed of the rock of the old red sand- 
stone, — the sides of which were partially covered with junipers, 
bluebells, wild briars, and other vegetation, reminding one of 
the Scottish hills — we overlooked a scene of the most imposing 
grandeur possibly to be imagined." 

The word ' Mamalnse.' 
Dr. Bigsbyjl speaks of "Marmoaze" as "41 m. from St. 

* Ja. p. 312. f G. p. 126. 

J Carv.p. 143. § Br. p. 31. 

|i Bigs. vol. ii.p. 189. . 



378 SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 

Mary's Eiver." In a note, he says that it is "a Chippewa 
word signifying 'an assemblage', and here referring to islets 
and reefs. It is" — he continues— " the 'Memince' of the 
' voyageurs? " 

One would expect ' Namainse,' rather than ' Mamainse ', as 
the equivalent to 'little sturgeon', Mr. Longfellow * adopting 
'nahma 1 as 'sturgeon', and Schoolcraft f giving ' nahmay' as 
the equivalent in the dialect of the Ojibwas of Saut Ste. Marie. 

It may be well to state 'here that -ains and -ongse have ap- 
peared in other places in this book J as diminutive suffixes, 
and are to be added to the four mentioned by Schoolcraft. § 

Siippl. to a, n. 32 (2.) [p. 209]. 

Serpentine near Lake Superior. 

Serpentine is found on Presqu' He Kiver (a stream that flows 
into Lake Superior between Ontonagon and Montreal Eiver), as 
well as above the Upper Falls of the Menomonee Eiver (which 
are nearly as far up as the junction of its two feeders). || 

SuppL to a. n. 35 (1.). 

The word ' Missipicooatong ' (or ' Miciuficoten''\ 

I have already (in p. 305, f. n.) virtually given a supplement 
to a. n. 35 (1.). To this it may be added, that, while -ong 

* H. v., viii. t Sen. I. pt. ii. p. 466. 

% See pp. 334, 336 (f. n.). * Mushkodainsug ' is = 'people of the little 
prairies', ' mushkoda ' being = 'prairie', -ains being a diminutive suffix, 
and -ug being the animate plural [see p. 351, f. n.]. (See Sch. I. pt. i. p. 307.) 
Charlevoix (t. i. p. 447) sa}S that ' Mascoutenec ' is their true name, and that 
it means ' an open country ', adding that, from the similarity of two aboriginal 
words, it was erroneously supposed to mean ' a land of fire '—a term certainly 
applicable to the oft-burning prairies. 

§ See p. 292, f. n. || F. and W. pt. ii. pp. 17, 25. 



SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 379 

probal • at',* •/...:- is. perhaps, merely a meaningless 

link. I have : served such links in other Ojibwa words. 
C^r" Michipicooton. 3 

Suppl. to a. n. 36 [p. 222\ 
Tee word ' Matchi ' ni ' Matchi ^Iahxitoo' 

[there i c no reason :: lonbt that, in the ease :: the name 

i Ma: . • t .'::' is = 'evil', the whole being = 

•Evil Spirit.' Schoolcraft} gives l Matchi Monnedo\ 'Mukji 

t ', and • MUt ' ' Monnedo ' § lis the 

forms in the iialects :: the Qjfbwas :: Sant S:e. Marie, Grand 

Traverse Bay, Saginaw, and Mackinaw. He^f gives 1 .::dji\ 

i a equivalents to ■ wicked ' among 

the fcwc former. ED Leis 'evA 1 :.' Mrs. 

that Maicha dash * (or ' Matchedash ? ), the 

name :: that inlet :: the _ sorgian Say into which the Severn 

flows, "signifies "cad and swampy place':" doubtless, 

should >-:::v-.- place. 3 

Suppl to a. n. 36 [jpp. 222. 223]. 

iHEBStOB SFir.ITS. 
SUCH AS THE SPLRIT OF KbBTCHI GaH3U. 

the Eed 3Ien "suppose*' spirit- 
r rank than the C and the Evil Spirit, ,; to p:\ - 

over all the extraordinary productions of nature, such as those 

* The termination - >;.me meaning [see pp. 374. 307). 
".37. : Sch. I. pt. ii. p. 458. 

p. 219. |J Seep. 306. 

% Sch. I. pt. ii. p. 1 '7. ** E!., The book oj Isaiah. 

p. 311. # Carv. p, 382. 



380 SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 

lakes, rivers, or mountains, that are of an uncommon magnitude ; 
and likewise the beasts, birds, fishes, and even vegetables or 
stones * that exceed the rest of their species in size or singu- 
larity. To all of these they pay some kind of adoration. Thus, 
when they arrive on the borders of Lake Superior,f on the 
banks of the Mississippi, or any other great body of water, 
they present to the spirit, who presides there, some kind of 
offering." J 

Suppl. to a. n. 45 (3.). 

The word 'Canada.' 

In the Iroquois dialects, the words equivalent to ' village ' 
(kannata, &c.) are very like those equivalent to 'lake.' § 
Hence, it has been argued that ' Canada ' means ' lake-country ' : || 
but this seems to me hardly probable. 

Suppl to a. n. 46 [p. 247]. 
The word ' KAHMmisTiKWOYA.' 
Dr. Bigsby^f writes thus : — " Kaministigua Eiver ('Kiver of 

* See p. 342. 

t I have already [in a. n. 36 (p. 222)] said that I apprehend that they revere 
the spirit of the lake rather than, as Father Ailoiiez states it, the lake itself. 
This view of mine is corroborated by the fact that names of lakes take 
the animate plural [see &v n. 80 (p. 351, f. n.)]. I now find Charlevoix 
(iii. p. 281)— after repeating the statement in the Relation of Ailoiiez without 
mentioning that it is not his own— adding that he nevertheless thinks the 
object of worship is not the lake itself, but the spirit {genie) who presides 
over it. It seems to me better to say that it is the spirit who animates it. 

X He then refers to his relation (in p. 67) of having seen a chief of the 
Winnebagoes (whose name is preserved in that of a lake west of Lake 
Michigan) sacrifice all his valuables at the Falls of St. Anthony on the Missi- 
sippi. On the spirits of the Niagara Falls, see a. n. 89. 

§ Schoolcraft, Notes on the Iroquois, pp. 594, 595. 

|| " Hendrick," Hist. Mag., June, 1857. 1 Bigs. vol. ii. p. 231. 



SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 381 

the Isles', — Chippewa"). Certainly ' minis ' is = * island' in the 
Chippewa (or Ojibwa) language, — a fact I observed when I first 
met with the word. ' Ka- ' appears in ' Kah-kah-beka \* 



Note to VII. [p. 67], and suppl to pp. 279 (/. n.), 268. 

The Eed Max's Plaiting his Hair. 

Catlin t gives an etching of a Eed Man, whose ' back hair ' 
" floated in plaits," and Mr. Longfellow; writes thus of the 
dandy, Pau-Puk-Keewis : — 

From his forehead fell his tresses, 
Smooth, and parted like a woman's, 
Shining bright with oil, and plaited. 

Suppl. to a. n. 62 (2.). 

The Sandy Hills called Le Grand Sable. 

I have made no error in speaking of this chain of hills as 
"the sandy hills" (IX. ii.): but they should not be called 
" sand-dunes ", as they are by Mr. Longfellow § and Dr. School- 
craft. || They would appear to be rather hills coated with sand. 
Messrs. "Whitney,^ having ascended the ridge to measure its 
height (which they found to be 336 f.), " discovered, at the very 
top, layers and masses of coarse pebbles, resting on the sand, 
and scattered through it. These, of course, could not have been 
blown from below." 



* See p. 291. t Cat. vol. ii. p. 19G. 

% H. xi. (p. 82). § H. xi. [p. S3]. 

|| Sch. H. L. p. 299. If F. and W. pt. i. pp. 210, 211. 



382 SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 

Suppl. to IX. f. n. c [p. 79]. 

The White and the Bed Trillium. 

" These flowers" — says Mr. Gosse,* in an account of them — 
" are called by some of the Americans the White and the Eed 
Death : for what reason so ominous a name is given them, I am 
unable to determine." It is a happy coincidence, that I have 
supposed Leelinaw to select the former for one of the compo- 
nents of her wreath. 

Note to XL [pp. 102, 105]. 

' Grandfather ' a Title of Kespect. 

The " stately crane " is addressed by the title of " grand- 
father" in Dr. Schoolcraft's " legend ",f as well as in my 
paraphrastic canto. Mrs. Jameson says that " ' grandfather ' is 
a title of very great respect." Henry J relates that the Ojibwas, 
whom he accompanied from Saut Ste. Marie to Fort Niagara, 
meeting with a rattlesnake on the north-eastern coast of the 
Georgian Bay, addressed it "by the title of ' grandfather ', 
beseeching it to take care of their families during their absence, 
and to be pleased to open the heart of Sir William Johnson, 
so that he might ' show them charity ' and fill their canoes with 



* G. p. 159. t See Preface. 

t Seep. 335. 



SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 383 

Note to XIII. [p. 140], and suppl. to a. n. 76. 
The Ojibwa Name of the Milky Way. 

Inhabitants of the lake-country of North- America would be 
the more likely to imagine the Milky "Way to be a multitude of 
ghosts, on account of the clearness of the sky in that region 
during frosty nights. The following passage, which, as well as 
another, expressly mentions the Milky Way, is selected from 
several, in which Mr. Howison* speaks of his personal observa- 
tion of this in the peninsula between Lakes Huron and Erie : — 

"The night was cloudless and beautifully clear; and the 
stars gave so much light, that I could have read a book without 
any difficulty. The skies in Canada, during winter, are pecu- 
liarly transparent and dazzling. The brilliancy of the different 
constellations, and the distinctness of the galaxy make a stranger 
almost believe he has been removed to a new hemisphere, and 
brought nearer to the heavens than he ever was before." 

Suppl. to a. ft. 80. 

Other Old Names of Lake Simcoe. 

Bayfield, in the admiralty-charts, gives ' Shaineong ', as an 
aboriginal name. Henry speaks of the lake as Lac aux Claies. 

Another Old French Name of Lake Superior. 
Lake Superior was once given the name of Lac Bourbon.f 

* How. p. 227 ; cf. pp. 144, 180, 206. f Bigs. vol. ii. p. 178. 



384 SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES. 



Note to XV. [p. 161]. 

Comparison of the Life and Death of Men 
with those of t.rees. 

Herr Kohl,* I find, relates that, while he was looking at the 
drawing of a mahnitoo- wigwam (= t spirit-house') f on a birch- 
bark pouch, J he observed an object, which looked "like the 
drum-stick, with which themides" [meedas §] "beat the great 
drumf in their temple- ceremonies." The Eed Man said, 
though, " that it was not a J drum-stick, but ' an emblem of life ' ; 
the tree of life was intended by it. 'Like trees,' — he said, — 
' we grow up ; and like trees we pass away again.' I remem- 
bered," — says Herr Kohl, — " having noticed || that, when the 
people in the temple seized the drum-stick, they had also made 
some references to the tree of life. As everything among these 
i Indians ' is emblematical or symbolic, it is very possible they 
attach such a meaning to the drum-stick." 

Suppl. to a. n. 91. 

The Humming-Bird . 

The Mexicans used to call humming-birds * rays of the sun ', 
' tresses of the day-star ', % and ' murmuring birds.' 

* k. p. 152. t see Cfje JBafjltflljta'g jBrsam : »i. 1, 3, 9. 

t Seep. 19G. § a. n.75(2.). 

|| He. refers to K. p. 42. HXV.(p. 163). 



C&e BaPflSta'g Bream; 



Qfyz Wteittn on ff)t ©arlt Wiibtv. 



c c 



€\)t ©ahitofttaV ©ream ; 

OR 

W§z Wigion an tf)e H3arfc 3&tbn*. b 



i. 

l. 

11 warrior grim of stalwart* limb ! 

" Prithee, tell me, wherefore shown 
" These deft-drawn lines and strange-shaped signs 

" On thy pipe of ruddy stone. — c 

a On the Dahkohtas, see pp. 270, 325, 326. 

b This is a river, which flows into the Missi Seepi (commonly written ' Mis- 
sissippi '), or Great River [see pp.. 193, 307 (f. n.), 327 (f. n.)], from the west, 
at, about, lat. 45°, long. 93°. Its Dahkohta name is 'Minnee Sohta ' ( = 
* water-dark ', i. e. ' dark water'), whence ' Minnesota ', the name of one of 
the United States. Schoolcraft (Sch. T. pt. i. p. 183) says that this name 
originates from its " peculiar clouded colour," adding that it " is uncertain 
whether this phenomenon be due to sedimentary blue clays brought down 
from its tributaries, to leaves settled in its bed, to thick masses of foliage 
overhanging its banks, or the influx of the " [uppermost] " Mississippi waters 
in its flood." 

He also says that "by the Chippewas " [or Ojibwas], "who live north 
and east of the Dacotas, this river is called ' Oskibugi Seepi ' or ' the Young- 
Leaf River', in allusion to the early foliage of its forests," in comparison with 
theirs. 

It is also called ' St. Peter's River.' 

c The chief ' pipe-stone ' quarry is on the southern part of the Coteau des 
Prairies, in, about, lat. 45°, long. 97°. To the Red Man, it is sacred, and asso- 
ciated with numerous legends. Catlin gives a chemical analysis of this stone 
by Dr. Jackson, of Boston. (Cat. vol. i. pp. 31, 234 ; vol. ii. pp. 1G0, 163—177, 
201—206; H. i. ; K. pp. 282, 283 ; Carv. pp.90, 101,359.) 

cc 2 



388 %ty BaPofjta's Bream ; or 

" Now rede me right, this winter-night, — 
" With thee and me alone." 



In rich array, all grimly gay, 

Was that proud chieftain drest ; 
Bright shells d did deck his vermeil'd 6 neck, 

The eagle's quills his crest : f 
And, lo ! scalps four, begrimed with gore, 

G-loom'd his gay-spangled vest.e 

3. 

White Man ! " — quoth he — " what thou dost see- 
" It minds me of my great dream, — h 
How foes twice twain, as in war-path slain, 
" To sink from sight did seem, — 



d Catlin (vol. i. p. 222), describing a Dahkohta chief who sat to him for his 
portrait, says that he had " on his neck several strings of wampum" — that 
is, perforated bits of " vari-coloured shells," hung on deer-sinews. (Other 
instances of this are in Cat. vol. ii. pp. 22, 23.) Shells are regarded as charms 
(see a. n. 75, p. 343 ; Sch. I. pt. i. p. 86 ; K. pp. 48, 136). 

e Catlin (ib.) says that " the neck and breast and shoulders of" the same 
chief " were curiously tattooed, by pricking in gunpowder and vermilion, 
which was put on in such elaborate profusion, as to appear, at a little distance, 
like a beautifully-embroidered dress." 

f Herr Kohl (K. p. 402) states this, in the passage on which this poem is 
based. Catlin (vol. i. p. 2) speaks of 'Indian' chiefs, as having "their 
brows plumed with the quills of the war-eagle," and often depicts or describes 
them as thus decorated. 

g Catlin (especially in vol. i. p. 240) says that scalps are often hung on the 
dress. 

h It is a common thing for a Red Man to have had what he considers the 
great dream of his life, and Herr Kohl (K. passim) gives many other instances 
besides this one. On the importance attached to dreams and the supposed 
obligation to carry them out, see a. n. 74. 



fflbt Ffeton on tfte Itoit Ifttter. 389 

: How I woke, and rose, and slew our foes 
" On their own loved Chippewa stream. 1 



M. 



" Long while did last that weary fast, — j 

" At fall of leaf, I weet : 
" Long while my aching eyne did wake ; J " 

" Long while I ate not meat , ; J 
" Our mystic song I mutter' d long, 

" The magic drum long beat. k 



i The Chippewa River is a north-eastern tributary of the Missi-sippi (see 
my map). It derives its name from a Chippewa (or Ojibwa : see p. 265) 
village at the foot of the lake which is at its source. (Carv. p. 104). 

Since the composition of this poem, I have found that I have been fortunate 
in imagining this stream to have been the scene of the Dahkohta's exploit. 
Carver, in his map, marks a " road of war between the Chippeways and 
Naudowessie" [i. e. Dahkohtas : see a. n. 72 (p. 326, f. n.)], as running from 
the Falls of St. Anthony (on the Missi-sippi : see suppl. to a. n. 36), nearly 
due east, to the neighbourhood of the junction of the Flambeau River with 
the Chippewa River, and he speaks (p. 94) of the warfare as " continually" 
going on at the time (1766, 1767). Herr Kohl (K. p. 23) was given by an 
Ojibwa (or Chippewa) an account of a canoe-fight, on the Chippewa River, 
in which the narrator won some Dahkohta scalps. 

The Red Man sets great value on fasting and voluntary sleeplessness, not 
only as disciplinary preparations for the privations to be expected in warfare 
and in the chase, but, still more as the means of getting " powerful and good 
dreams*' (K. p. 374). Shinguak-ongse — a remarkable dream of whom has 
been related (in p. 336, f. n.) — had such dreams from his youth up. Twice 
in his tenth year did he, during ten consecutive days, abstain from taking a 
particle of food; and, " when grown up, he showed himself strong in fasting. 
... He said he fasted, because he wished to have fine dreams." (lb. cf. K. 
p. 234, and Carv. p. 285.) 

k Compare a. n. 75. 

C C 3 



390 Wfyz IJapofjta's Iteam; or 



" And long while now on the red pine's 1 bough 

" My dreary dream-bed 1 hung ; 
" And to and fro, as the gale did blow, 

Long while it sway'd and swung : 
" Long while, 'mid the yell of the storm- wind fell, 

" To and fro was my lithe frame flung. 



"Asl gazed on high, o'er the reeling sky 

" Full many a cloudlet pass'd ; 
" And I mark'd how all the tree-tops tall 

" Were bent by the mighty blast. — 
" Know, Sagganosh m chief! at fall o' the leaf 

" I kept that weary fast. 



4. 

' Each huge tree sway'd in the eerie shade, 

" While that fearful tempest blew ; 
'• And the light leaves flitter'd, and their fair forms 
glitter' d 

" With many a death- flush' d hue ; 

And I mark'd them, gleam in yon dark stream, b 

" Before my tossing view. 



1 See p. 221. An old man, who related to Herr Kohl the great dream of 
his youth, said that a lofty red pine was selected for the dream-bed (K. 
p. 234). 

m Among the Dahkohtas, this word is = ' English ' (Cat. vol. ii. p. 173, 
Carv. p. 96). The Ojibwa word is ' Yaganash ' (see p. 89, f. n.). 



fflb* ITtston on ti)e Darfe 3fttbtr* 391 

5. 

" Through the shimmering throng swept a shrill sad song, 

" As they whirl' d in trembling round ; 
" Each lithe stem moan'd, each stout trunk groan' d, 

" With a doleful dirge-like sound : n 
" Till, I wot, there came o'er my wearied frame 

" A wondrous tranced swound. 



HI. 

1. 

" Then far was I from reeling sky, 
" Then far from wind-rent wood, 

" No more my aching eyne did wake, 
" My parch' d lips yearn for food : 

" Then sped my soul to the lonely knoll, 
" Where the Mahnitoo-Wigwam stood. 



2. 

" I wis, there sate, — in ancient state, 

" And order due, — our sires, — 

1 

n I have introduced this imaginary scene, in order to account the better for 
some features in the vision. 

o The meedas [a. n. 75 (2.)] hold great and solemn assemblies of their 
society, — sometimes in the open air, sometimes in a rectangular wigwam, 
which is not roofed over, but open above. In the former case, it is " about 
fifty feet long and about fifteen feet broad." In the latter case, it is, Herr 
Kohl found, forty feet long. In one, which came under his observation at 
La Pointe (Lake Superior), it extended from east to west, and its entrance 
was at the eastern end, while the way out was at the western. It is built " on 
an open " and " elevated spot." " No one may enter, who has not been 
invited." It is sometimes called the wigwam [a. n. 54] of the meedas, some- 
times the mahnitoo-wigwam (' spirit-house'). (See suppl. [p. 384] j Assik. ii. ; 
3eh. I. pt. i. pp. 358, 3C0; K. pp. 40, 41, 151.) 
c c 4 



392 Wbi Iteijfeotjta'* Bream; or 

" As they sate, of yore, the hearths before 

" Of our seVn council-fires,* 
" All grimly dight with war-paint bright, * 

" And garb that awe inspires.* 

3. 

" There, hoar with age, sate ' sachem ' r sage, — 

" There many a holy seer, — 8 
" And warriors bold, — and wise men 1 old, 

" In all their grisly gear,* 
" With * shee-shee-kwoys ' u of grewsome noise, 

" With many a bristling spear. n 



" Grim mask to the head and raiment dread, 
" Hung the skin of the yellow bear : B 

" From each ample fold hung skins untold, 
" Stored, I wis, with amulets rare ; 

" Yea, priceless -7 charms for all human harms, 
" In myriad skins, w were there. 



p p. 270, f. n. q p. 343, f. n. See Hi. vol. ii. p. 127, Cat. vol. i. p. 40. 

r p. 311. s The jossakeed [a. n. 75 (1.)]. t The meeda [ a. n. 75 (2,)]. 

u The shee-shee-kwoy (' rattle ') [p. 342] is shaken with the right hand, 
while the " ' medicine '-spear " [p. 343] " or magic wand" is brandished by 
the left (Cat. ib.). The yellow bear— an inhabitant of the Barren Grounds 
[p. 213], which lie north and east of Great Slave Lake (at, about, lat. 62°, 
long. 115°) and stretch thence to the Polar Sea— is much dreaded by the Red 
Men of that region (Rich. F. B.), and its skin is viewed with superstitious 
awe by those of southern parts (Cat. ib.). 

▼ Enormous prices are paid by the Red Men to each other for charms. 
Herr Kohl (K. p. 382) met with a chief, who had paid 30,000 dollars for his. 

w See a. n. 75, (2.), A. 



Wit Ffeton on tjje iBarfe Utter* 393 



' There were skins of all, that run, or crawl, 

" Or glide, in wood or pond ; 
: Yea, and countless things, — claws, tails, and wings,- 

" Had those olden warlocks donn'd : 

The folds of that skin they glow'r'd within, — 

" They wound o'er that magic wand. u 



" Yea, and old-world lines and forgotten signs, — 

" That sickness all dispell'd, 
" That would shield from ill, or foeman kill, w 

" That mightiest spirits quell' d, — w 
" In the monstrous snakes of the old-world lakes 3 

" "Were borne by those men of eld. 

7. 
" And 'mid that array the huge stone * lay. — 

" The stone of Unktahee/ 
" That Serpent y dread, which hath His bed 

" In the depths of the vasty sea. — y 



x The traditions of the Red Men tell of monstrous serpents, that abode, 
many ages since, in the great lakes, and devoured the men of their shores. 

7 " A large stone "—says Herr Kohl (K. p. 42)— "lay in the grass, in the 
central line of the" temple, "but nearer the east door." It "was left un- 
touched during the entire ceremony." He questioned a meeda about it. 
" * See ! ' — said the meeda, pointing to heaven — ' the Good Spirit is up there, 
and the Evil Spirit' — he added, pointing down to the earth — 'is there under 
us. The stone is put there for him.' " 

While the Ojibwas call the Evil Spirit, or God of the Water, ■ Matchi 
Mahnitoo' (= Evil Spirit : see a. n. 36 [pp. 220—222] and suppl. to a. n. 36), 
the Dahkohtas call him 'Unktahee' (Sch. I. pt. iii. pp. 485, 232). He "is 



394 W&z UaPoI)ta>s Brtam; or 

" In ancient state those phantoms sate, — 
" An awful companie. 



" They bade ° me come, and beat the drum, — 

" The drum of eerie tone, — z 
" And bow, and sing, to the Water King/ 

" A-near the magic stone,— 
cc That great is He who haunts the sea, — 

" That He is Lord alone. 



9. 

I sate, I bow'd, I pray'd, I vow'd, 

" Amid that awful throng: 

I -bent the knee to Unktahee ; 

" I call'd upon him long : — 

The big drum z rung, the while I sung 

" Our ancient mystic song : 



the master-spirit of all their juggling" [a. n. 75] " and superstitious belief," 
and from him they think they get all their " supernatural powers." He 
" and his associates are seen in their dreams." {lb.) , Mr. Longfellow (H. xv. 
[p. Ill) relates how Chibi-abos was " drowned in the deep abysses of" [cf. 
IV. 4 (p. 27)] Lake Superior by Unktahee and "the Evil Spirits," — that is, 
to use Schoolcraft's expression, " his associates." 

Herr Kohl (K. p. 422) was told a story (the basis of my Canto XL), in 
which the Evil Spirit, or Lord of the Water, comes up in the form of a huge 
serpent. Serpents are considered to belong to him [see a. n. 36, p. 221]. 

By " the vasty sea," Lake Superior is to be understood (as in XL [p. 111]). 

z " Tn the middle of the temple was the big drum, which in religious cere- 
monies is beaten with a small wooden hammer fastened to a long wand. It 
is slightly different from the ordinary drum " (see a. n. 75, pp. 341, 342, — 
especially, 341, f. n.) : " it is longer, produces a more hollow sound, and has 
a special name—' the temple-drum ' " (K. p. 42). See p. 384. 



10. 

" * ®§ i Qxzzt fyz Miofrt 0f tljat Xfreatt <^irtt* 

M * Wfyify toannttt) in fyz &zk : 
M * C^rnug^ eartf) ?§e jjotti) to anU ixa : 

" < tea, Ear* nf all tt |§e. 
44 * 38 e %&z Kttoxzts, n$ 0nlp %nxts : 

" ' Cn igtm all l^nnnitr fo,' aa 

n 

" I mutter' d slow, I mutter' d low ; 

" Then quick and loud I sung : aa 
" In selfsame time, with solemn chime, 

" That hollow-toned z drum rung : — 
" So sing the waves, so ring the caves, 

" At Schkuee-archibi-kung. bb 

12. 

" And, — the while I sung and the big z drum rung, — 

" The air behind was stirr'd : 
" Nor grewsome noise of ' shee-shee-kwoys ', 

" I wis, that sound I heard, — 
" Nor the pealing clap we hear, when flap 

" The wings of the Thunder Bird. cc 

aa in a case which came under the observation of Mr. Hind (vol. ii. p. 127) 
(in, about, lat. 51i°, long.. 104i°), a "conjuror employed himself in beating 
a drum, and singing at intervals the following words, — first uttered slowly 
with a pause between each word,— lastly, with energy and rapidity . — 
' Great — is — the — man — who — walks 
' In— the — middle — of— the — earth ; 
' He — is— the— only — true— Lord.' " 
bb See a. n. 32 (pp. 204, 208). 

cc Mr. Hind (Hi. vol. ii. p. 144) speaks of the "prairie-Indians" as 
" anxious and timid during the roll of thunder, invoking the Great Bird by 



396 We$ ItaPof)ta's Uream; or 

13. 

" I listed, I gazed, some while, amazed ; 

" I listed, I gazed in vain : 
" Till it smote my ear, — as though a-near, 

" And nearer, and yet more plain ; 
" Till I saw the flash, till I heard the plash, 

" Sweep by me of birch-boats twain. 

14. 

" They swept, — in my dream, — where the Chippewa stream 

" To the Missi Seepi dd flows : 
" And in either canoe sate warriors two ; 

" And I knew them our nation's foes : ee 
" Ah ! wots no man, when that feud began, 

" Nor how that feud arose. ee 

15. 

u They were now before the hallow' d door, ° 

" As they glode o'er the silver sky : — 
" As they paddled apace, on each warrior's face 

" I saw the charcoal's ff dye ; 
" As they swept along, I heard the song 

' That is sung when death is nigh. 



whose flapping wings they suppose it to be produced." Mr. Parkman (p. 34) 
says that " the Dahkohtas, as well as the Algonquins" [to which group the 
Ojibwas and the Odahwas belong], " believe that the thunder is produced by 
a bird." Compare Cat. vol. ii. p. 164. On the belief of the Iroquois, see 
a. n. 89. 

dd See pp. 193, 327 (f. n.%). » 

ee See p. 270 (f. n. §). 

tt Charcoal is used by the Red Men for blackening the face (K. p. 162). 



%\i Vision on tf»e Darit Iftttor, 397 

16. 

" They were now before the hallow' d door 

" Of the 3Iahnitoo-lodge,° I weet. 
" As they paddled swift, a grisly rift& s 

" Was oped beneath my feet : 
" As they onward flew, they sank from view. — 

" Those men, and their birch-boats fleet. 

17. 

" I gazed astound. — Then broke that swound, — 

" As glamour of summer-day, — hh 
" As melts, at e'en, in the golden sheen 

" Full many a dainty fay. — " 
" In my dream-bed now on the red pine's bough 

" Again, as erst, I lay. 



1. 

Then rose the sun o'er the woodland dun 
" From behind the purple hill : 
■ Tore his arrows bright fled the shades of night ; 
" They glanced on rock and rill: — 



g? Carver marks in his map some falls at the very spot where the " road of 
war between the" Chippewas (or Ojibwas) and the Dahkohtas crosses the 
Chippewa River, and some others a few miles below. Should any one wish to 
account rationally for the ' catastrophe ' in Cf)S !Bai)lt£iT)to*5» l3tCam, 
he may suppose that the Dahkohta had been previously acquainted with these 
falls. 

hh Alluding to the phenomena of the mirage (see V. 13, X. 6, and a. n.66). 

" See IX. (i., ii.), and a. n. 61. 



398 Ww 3Baijfeo!>ta'8 Itoam; or 

" His beaming face, — it show'd me grace ; 
" My dream had not boded ill.JJ 

2. 

" At fall o ? the leaf — know, Sagganosh chief ! — 

" That weary fast I kept ; 
" Morn, eve, and noon, — while grew that moon, — 

" I neither ate nor slept : 
" Ere that moon did wane, our foes were slain, 

" And, lo ! of these grim scalps reft. 

3. 

" I had not forgot the fateful spot 

" I saw in that ghostly dream, 
" When our foemen flew before my view 

" O'er the Chippewa's silver stream, 
" And in grisly rift, — as they paddled swift, — ■ 

" To sink from sight did seem. 

4. 

" They swept, — in my dream, — where the Chippewa 
stream 

'•' To the Missi Seepi flows : 
" My lips, I weet, tasted no meat, 

" My body no repose, — 
" I rested not, — till I reach'd that spot 

" And slew our nation's foes. 



jj A Red Man told Herr Kohl (K. p. 402) that " a fine sun-rise after a dream 
is the best " of signs. On the Sun God, see a. n. 88. 



Whz Ffetou on tfje Barft l&t'ber. 399 



" Since that glorious fray, have pass'd away — 
" Know, White Man ! — snows a score ; — kk 

" And lo ! on the vest, that wraps my breast, 
" Still hang their scalp-locks four : — 

' ' How they sank and died in the Chippewa's tide 
" These mind me evermore. 

2. 

" And see all set on my calumet ! — 

" Lo ! that awful companie ! 
" Lo ! amid them shown the magic stone, — 

" The stone of Unktahee, — 
" That Serpent dread, which hath His bed 

" In the depths of the vasty sea ! 

3. 

" Lo ! each canoe, — as it onward flew 
" To the brink of our foemen's tomb, — 

"■ As they paddled swift to the grisly rift, 
" That rift of grewsome gloom ! — 

" Upturn' d each boat o'er the rift doth float, 
" To betoken, I wot, its doom. 11 



kk Carver (p. 250) says that the Red Men " in the interior parts count their 
years by winters, or, as they express themselves, by snows." He seems to 
always refer especially to the Dahkohtas (whom he calls ' the Naudowessies 'J, 
expressly stating this in his chapter on the religion of the Red Men. Mr. 
Hind Cvol. ii, p. 154) says that among the Dahkohtas " years are enumerated 
by winters." Elliot found the same custom among the Massachusetts 
* Indians' of the 17th century (Sch. I. pt. i. p. 284). 

11 In another part of his book (namely in K. p. 159), Herr Kohl gives a 



400 W>z Itafifcofita'g Bream- 



4. 

" All I saw, astound, in that wondrous swound 

" Is, thou see'st, for ever shown, 
" By deft-drawn lines and picture-signs,' 

" On my pipe of ruddy stone. — 
" I rede thee right, this winter-night, 

" With thee and me alone." mm 



drawing of a board, which served the purpose of a tomb-stone. Among the 
picture-signs on it is an inverted figure of a bear ; — which is, says Herr Kohl, 
as much as to say :—• " Here lies the chief of the Bear clan " [or, in Red Men's 
language, of the Bear totem : see a. n. 71]. 

mm This little poem is based on the following passage in K. p. 402 : — 

" In a journey I once took on the St. Peter's River" [or Minnee Sohta] 
" in the Sioux " [or Dahkohta] *' country, accident brought me together with 
an Indian," who " was bedizened with many eagle-feathers and other trophies, 
and had a painting on his pipe, which, he told me, represented a glorious 
dream. He had dreamed it twenty years previously, and always connected 
it with the greatest exploit in his life — the slaughter of four" Ojibwas. 

** After having fasted, sung, and beaten the drum for a long time, — he said it 
seemed to him as if he were entering a temple, or great * medicine '-wigwam. 
Round it sat many old wise men, the warriors and chiefs of the nation since 
olden times. They bade him welcome, allowed him to enter the sanctuary, 
and permitted him to beat the drum and sing in honour of the" Evil " Spirit 
near the great stone in the centre. While sitting to pray and sing in the 
midst of these men, he heard something coming towards him through the 
air. He could not at first detect what it was, but gradually saw that there were 
two canoes floating in the air, in each of" which "two" Ojibwas were 
" seated. The faces of these, his enemies, were blackened, and they had 
sung their death-song. The men and the canoes came floating up quite close 
to the door of the temple ; when suddenly a large hole opened in the ground. 
The men with the canoes paddled into the hole, and they were swallowed up 
close before his eyes and feet. 

'* Directly after, the whole dream melted away. He knew that he was 
destined to kill four" Ojibwas, "and he therefore crept into the" Ojibwa 
** land, found the four men, in their canoes, at the right spot (and this was 
also indicated to him in his dream, though I know not how), killed them one 
after the other, and brought home their four scalps. "^ 

" He had, therefore, carried about with him through life a memorial of this 
deed and his dream. I had no reason to believe that he was deceiving me, 
for the two canoes were represented inverted." 



ABBREVIATIONS. 







I. 




WOBDS IN FREQUENT USE. 


= 


equivalent to. 


a. 


= 


area. 


a. n. 


= 


appendix-note. 


b. 


-= 


breadth. 


cf. 


= 


compare. 




= 


depth. 


f. 


= 


foot or feet. 


fms. 


= 


fathoms. 


f. n. 


= 


foot-note. 


h. 1. 


= 


height above the lake. 


h.t. 


= 


height above the ocean-tide. 


H.B.C. 


. = 


Hudson's Bay Company. 


Intr. 


= 


Introduction. 


m. 


= 


mile or miles. 


P- 


= 


page, 


pp. 


= 


pages. 


par. 


= 


paragraph. 


pt. 


= 


part. 

D D 



402 ABBREVIATIONS. 

suppl. = supplemental note. 

t. = tome or tomes. 

U.S. = United States. 

v, = volume or volumes. 

II. 

Authorities. 

[Aud., B., EL, Henn., La Poth., Le Hont., Rich. F. B., and Wil. have been 
quoted indirectly.] 

Ag. = Agassiz (L.): see C. 

Assik. = Assikinack (Francis), " a warrior of the Odahwas " * : — 

i. = Legends and traditions of the Odahwas ; — ii. = Social 

and warlike customs of the Odahwas ;— iii. = The Odahwa 

language: — in the Canadian Journal; Toronto; March, 

July, November; 1858. 
Aud. = Audubon (J. J.) : Ornithological biography, or an 

account of the habits of the birds of the IT. S. : Edinburgh ; 

1831-1838. 
B. = Bouchette (J.), surveyor-general of Lower Canada : The 

British dominions in North America: London ; 1832, 

* His papers (read before the Canadian Institute) are ushered in by a 
note, in which it is stated that he "is a full-blood Indian, and a son of one of 
the chiefs of the Odahwas (or Ottawas) in" Great Mahnitoolin Island 
[a. n. 20], — that, " in 1840, he was sent, at the age of sixteen, to Upper Canada 
College, Toronto, by the Superintendent-General of Indian affairs," and that 
he then (in 1858) filled " the office of Interpreter in the Indian Department 
at Cobourg" [on L=*ke Ontario, south of Rice Lake], 

It must have been his father that was the "chief interpreter" of Mrs. 
Jameson's party at Great Mahnitoolin Island. She speaks of him as one of 
" the Ottawa chiefs " of that island, and as " a very remarkable man." " This 
man"— she adds, — "who understands English well, is the most celebrated 
orator of his nation. They relate with pride, that on one occasion he began 
a speech at sun-rise, and that it lasted, without intermission, till sun-set." 
She says that the name (which she writes " As-si-ke-nack ") means ' Black- 
bird.' CJa. pp. 27G, 278, 288.) 



AUTHORITIES. 403 

BaL = Ballantyne (E. M.) : Hudson 1 s Bay, or six years in the 
territories of the H. B. C. : 2nd. edn. ; Edinburgh and 
London; 1848. 

Bay. = Bayfield (Captain) : Admiralty-charts ; accompanied by 
a small book. 

Bigs. = Bigsby (J.), M.D., Hon. Mem. of the American Geolo- 
gical Society, &c. : The shoe and canoe, or pictures of travel 
in the Canadas : London ; 1850. 

Br. = Brown (J. B.): Views of Canada and the colonists: 2nd 
edn. ; Edinburgh and London ; 1851. 

C. = Cabot (J. E.) : Narrative of the tour; in Agassiz's Lake 

Superior: 1vol. 8vo. ; Boston; 1850. 

Carv. = Carver (J.), "Captain of a Company of Provincial 
Troops during the late war with France : " Travels through 
the interior parts of 2s orth- America, in the years 1766, 1767, 
and 1768 : London; 1778. 

Cat. = Catlin (G-.) : Letters and Notes on the North- American 
Indians, written during eight years' travel (1832-1839): 
4th edn. 8vo. : London ; 1844. 

Ch. = Charlevoix (le Pere), de la Compagnie de Jesus : His- 
toire et description generate de la Nouvelle France ; avec le 
journal historique d y un voyage fait par ordre du roi dans 
VAmerique Septe?itrionnale : 3 t. 4°. : Paris, 1744. 

D. = Disturnell [pub.] : A trip through the Lakes, §c. : Xew 

York; 1857. 

Da. = Dablon (le Pere), de la Compagnie de Jesus : [in Jes. I]. 

El. = Elliot : * Translation of the Holy Scripturts into the 
tongue of the Indians of Massachusetts : Cambridge, Massa- 
chusetts; 1685.f 

* See pp. 292 (f. n.), 3C6 (f. n.). His life has been written by the Rer. 
Cotton Mather. 

t He published a translation of the New Testament in 1661, one of the Old 
in 1663, and a revised one of both in 1685. 
D D 2 



404 ABBREVIATIONS. 

F. and W. = Foster (J. W.) and Whitney (J. D.), TJ. S. Geolo- 

gists ; aided, in pt. ii., by Messrs. James Hall and E. Desor : 
Report on the geology and topography of the Lake Superior 
land-district ; in 2 pts. : Washington; 1850, 1851. 

G. = Gosse (P. H.) : The Canadian naturalist ; or, conversations 

on the natural history of Lower Canada: London ; 1840. 

Gou. = Gould (J.), F.K.S., &c. : A monograph of the Trochi- 
lidce, or humming-birds : London; 1861. 

H. = The song of Hiawatha ; by H. W. Longfellow : 5th edn. ; 
London (Bogue) ; 1855. 

Ha. = The Handbook of Toronto : Toronto ; 1858. 

He. = Henry (A.) : Narrative of captivity ; written by himself: 
given, in full, in Sch. Am. I. 

Hen. = Hennepin (le Pere), de l'ordre de St. Francois : Nou- 
velle description d'un tres-grand Pays situe dans V Amerique 
entre le Nouveau Mexique et la Mer glaciate, depuis Van 
1670 jusqvJen 1682, avec des Reflexions sur les entreprises 
de M. Cavalier de la Sale, et autres choses concernant la 
Description et CHistoire de V Amerique Septentrionnale : 
Utrecht; 1697. 

Hi. = Hind (H. Y.), F.K.G.S., &c. : Narrative of the Canadian 
Red River exploring -expedition 0/1857 [cf. R. R.], and of 
the Assinniboine and Saskatchewan exploring -expedition of 
1858: London; 1860. 

Hist. Mag. = The Historical Magazine; a 'monthly': New 
York and London. 

How. = Howison (J.): Sketches of Upper Canada: 3rd edn. ; 
1 v., 8vo. ; Edinburgh and London ; 1825. 

Ja. = Jameson (Mrs. A.) : Sketches in Canada, $c. ; 2 nos. of 
Longman's 'Traveller's Library': London; 1852. (Are- 
print of portions of Winter- Studies and summer rambles in 
Canada: 3 v., 8vo. ; London ; 1838.) 



AUTHORITIES. 405 

Jes» = Relations des Jesuites : — I. (1611-1672): Quebec; 

1858:— II. (1672-1679); Paris; 1861. 
K. — Kohl (J. Gk): Kitchi- Garni, or, Wanderings round Lake 

Superior: London; 1860. 
K C. = Kohl (J. Gr.) : Travels in Canada, $c : London ; 1861. 
L. = Longfellow (H. W.) : see H. 
La Poth. = La Potherie (M. de Baequeville de): Histoire de 

VAmerique Septentrionnale : &c. : Paris ; 1722. 
Le Hont. = Le Hontan (Baron) : Voyages dans VAmerique, et 

Memoir es (ou la suite des Voyages) : Amsterdam ; 1705. 
Ly. 2nd vis. = Lyell (Sir Charles) : A second visit to the U. S. : 

London; 1849. 
Ly. Tr. = Lyell (Sir C.) : Travels in North America : London: 

1845. 
Mart. = Martin (E. Montgomery), F.S.S. : History of Canada: 

small edn. ; London; 1836. 
Murr. = Murray (A.) : in the * blue book ' entitled Report of 

progress of geological survey of Canada in 1846-7 : Toronto ; 

1848. 
N. = Nelson [publisher] : The Fcdls of Niagara ; a complete 

guide : London, Edinburgh, 'New York, and Toronto ; 1858. 
0. = Oliphant (L.) : Minnesota and the Far West: Edinburgh 

and London ; 1855. 
P. = Parkman (F., jr.) : History of the conspiracy of Pontiac, 

fyc. : London edn. ; 1851. 
K. E. = 'Blue book' on the exploration, in 1857, of the country 

between Lake Superior and the Bed River settlement [cf. 

Hi.]; Toronto; 1858. 
Eich. = Eichardson (Sir J. ; C.B.), M.D., F.R.S., F.L.S, &c. : 

Arctic searching -expedition, $c. : London; 1851. 
Eich. F. B. = Eichardson (Sir J.) : Fauna Boreali- Americana : 

London; 1831—1837. 

D D 3 



406 ABBREVIATIONS. 

Sch. Am. I. = Schoolcraft (H. P.), LL.D : The American In- 
dians, SfC : new edn. ; Buffalo ; 1851. 

Sell. H. L. = Schoolcraft (H. E.), LL.D. : The myth of Hia- 
watha, and other legends of the North- American Indians : 
Philadelphia and London ; 1856. 

Sch. I. = The Indian tribes of the U. S. : Philadelphia (pub- 
lished by authority of Congress) ; 1851-1853. 

Simp. = Simpson (Sir Gr.), Governor of the H. B. C. : An 
overland-journey round the world in the years 1841 and 
1842: American edn. ; Philadelphia; 1847. 

St. = Stanford [publisher] : The Canadian settler's guide ; pub- 
lished by authority : 10th edn. ; London; 1860. 

Thomps. = Thompson (Professor Zadok) : History of Vermont, 
natural and civil: Burlington, Vermont; 1853. 

War. = Warburton (Gr.) : The English conquest of Canada- 
London; 1849. 

Wil. — Wilson (A.) : American ornithology : New York ; 1854. 



INDEX. 



The figures refer to the pages of the book. An asterisk (*) appended to a figure 
denotes that further references will be found at that place (see Introduction). 

Words etymologically explained are printed in italics. 

The following abbreviations are used:— B. = Bay, C.= Cape, Fs. = Falls,Ft.= 
Fort, Gt. = Great, I. = Island, L,= Lake, Lit. = Little, M.=Mountain, Pt.= Point, 
T. M. = Table of ' Moons.' 

The references are. placed in order of importance, sometimes in chronological 
order. 



ABE 

Abenaki; 376 

Abies alba; 274 (f. n.) 

— Canadensis; 178, 125, 267 
AVnaki; 376 

Agate Cove ; 42 

— Is. ; 217 
Ahdik-kummig ; 89, 210: the; 

see ' Whitefish ' 
AM; 376 
Alempigon, Alimipegon, Allani- 

pegon; 375 (f. n.)* 
Alloiiez, le Pere Claude ; 199, 

222 
Algonquins, the; 396, 312 
Amethyst, the ; 42 
Animate plural (Algonquin) ; 

denoted by suffix -g [with 

or without a vowel] ; (the 

inanimate by the suffix -?i) ; 

351* 
Anthony (St.), Falls of; 380, 

389 
Apakwa, the; 195, 304*, 275, 

276, 280, 266 
Apostle Is., a legend about one 

of the; 235 



BIB 

Apukwa ; see ' Bulrush ' 
Arbor vitse, the ; see ' Thuja ' 
Arbre Croche, L' ; 270, 311 (f. 

n.), 329, 332 (f. n.) 
' Arbutus, the trailing'; 186, 15 
Assikinack; 402: F., and his 

father; ib. 
Ati-Jcameg ; see 'Ahdik-kummig' 
' Aurora Borealis,' the; 83 



' Baggatiway ' (a game of ball) ; 

301*, 331 
' Barren Grounds, the ' ; 392* 
Barrie; 181, 8 
Bass-wood; 267* 
Bear, the yellow ; 392 
Beaver, the Great; 316 [so read 

for 'Michabou'] 
Bell Ewart ; 4, 8 
Belle I.; 372: Strait of, ib. 
'Bellois'; 192 
Bereavement, removal from the 

scene of a ; 302-4* 
Beverley, ossuary in ; 345 
Birch, the canoe- or paper- ; 
d4 



408 



INDEX. 



BLA 

195-6: its bark, uses of; 
ib., 141, 343, 384, 266, 275, 
280* 

Black B. and K. ; 45-6 

'Black Kobes,' the; 283: see 
' Jesuits ' 

Blackening the face ; see ' Char- 
coal' 

' Bloody Kun;' 366 

Blue Ms. ; 18, 184-5 

' Bois Blanc' ; see ' Cedar, white' : 
L; 145, 318, 338 

'Bois forts, les'; 304 (f. n.) 

Bones in caves at Mackinaw, 
333-5, 126 

'Boucane' ; 192 

Bourbon, L. ; 192 (f. n.), 383 

Bow, use by children of the; 
273 (f. n.)* 

Bowls and spoons, use of wooden ; 
267, 284* 

Brady, Ft. ; 198 

Brock, Sir I.; and his monu- 
ment; 367-9* 

Bruce Mines ; 190, 22, 185 

Bulrush; 198 (f. jn.)* 

Burial-customs ; 127, 345, 303 

Burlington Heights; 178; cf. 
366 

Butterflies ; 14, 69, 256 

Bytown ; see ' Ottawa City ' 



Cabot; 19 

— 'sHead; 19 

Calumet-dance, the; its legen- 
dary institutor ; 235 

Canada; 380*; the original ap- 
plication of this name by the 
European discoverers ; 244 

— ; its capitulation to the British 
forces ; 329 : its cession from 
France to Great Britain ; 



CLA 

ib. : the union and re-union 
of Upper and Lower ; 176 ; 
its parliament ; ib. : its seat 
of government ; ib. 
Canoe, the ; its legendary in- 
ventor ; 235: its Ojibwa 
name ; 345*: different kinds ; 
274-6* 277, 264, 196 

— songs ; 56-8 
Cannibalism ; 334* 

* Caroline ', the steamer ; 366 
' Carrageen moss ' ; 215 
Carriboo, the; 212, 339, 278, 

328, 26 : its Ojibwa name ; 

89 

— I. ; 26 

Cartier, Jacques ; 243, 364 
Cat, the wild ; see ( Lynx ' 
Cedar, the 'white'; see 'Thuja' 

— L.; 192 

Charcoal ; a use of it ; 396 : made 
from ' white cedar ' ; 192 

Charlotte, Ft. ; 296 

Charms, things used as ; 343, 
392-3 : carried in whole 
skins of animals ; ib. : enor- 
mous alleged prices of; 392 

Chibi; see { Jeebi' 

Chibi-nbos; 345* 394 (f. n.) 

Chicago ; grain shipped from it ; 
117 

Chipi ; see ■ Jeebi ' 

Chipmunk, the ; 179 

Chippewa ; 345* 

— E. ; 389, 397 
— , town of; 148 
Chippewas, the ; see ' Ojibwas ' 
Chlorastrolite, the; 238-9, 45, 

29 
Church's Landing ; 191 
Chusco, a 'jossakeed;' 334 
Clair (St.) Flats; 349, 147 

— E. ; 349, 147, 159 



INDEX. 



409 



CLI 

Clinton-group, the ; 356-7 

Cloche (La) I., and cause of 
name; 376* 

— Ms. ; 189, 21 

Cockburn I. ; 21 

Coldwater L. ; 253 

Collingwood ; 185,11-13 

Columbia, British; 213: routes 
to ; see ' Eed E. routes ' 

Colymbus glacialis ; see ' Loon ' 

Compass (the) affected by iron 
in the coast ; 32 

'Concession'; 179 

Copper; 21-2, 190-1, 209,217, 
237-8, and see Map : super- 
stitious veneration of it ; 
218, 219 (f. n.), 225, 238 
(f.n.) 

Coregonus albus ; see ' White- 
fish' 

Couchiching, L. ; see ' Kootchi- 
tching ' 

Coverlets; 280-1*, 274 

Coves, I. of; 20 

1 Coureurs des bois ' ; xiv 

Cows at Ft. William, the; 58-60 

Cradle, the Ojibwa in the ; 272* 
268 

"Crane", "the stately"; see 

' Cranes ', the ; 110-11, 312-13 
Creation of the earth and man, 

legends about the ; 44, 232, 

233, 309-10, 106-7 
Crees, the ; 270* 
' Crosse, la ' ; see ' Baggatiway ' 
— , Prairie de ; cause of name ; 

302 (f.n.) 
Crow Wing; 246 
Current E. ; 250 (f. n.), 246 

(f. n.), 239 

Dahkohtas (or Nadouessioux, 



DRE 
Sioux, &c); their names; 
270 (f. n.), 325-6: 'phy- 
sique'; 326 (f.n.): fierce- 
ness ; 270 : personal deco- 
ration, and dress; 388 (f.n.): 
situation; 270, T. M., 400: 
feud with the Ojibwas; 270, 
396: recent massacre of 
White Men ; 270 : also see 
' Thunder ' and ' Years ' 

HBaPnl)ta'£( UBream, tfje ; 385 

Dances, the legendary institutor 
of; 235 

Dead (the), Path of; 345* 383 : 
superstitions about, and con- 
sequent customs ; 345* 192 

Death-song, the; 400, 396: cf. 
391 

Decoy-fish; 348* 188 

Deer ; see ' Carriboo ' 

Deluge in North America, tradi- 
tion of a ; 233, 334 

Detroit ; 376, 147 

< Devil's Hole ', the ; 357* 

Diamond, C. ; 371* : cause of its 
name, ib. 

Diminutive suffixes, Algonquin ; 
378* 

Dog, the ; not permitted to enter 
a holy place, yet sacrificed to 
objects of Veneration ; 224, 
221 (f. n.) 

— : the cause of this name of a 

hill; 233 (f.n.) 

— L., at,, ; 251' 
, Lit, ; 250 

— M. and Portage, Gt. ; 250*, 

255 

— E.; 252-3 

, Lit. ; 251 : its Fs. ; ib. 

Don E. ; 194 

Dragon-flies ; 69 

Dreams — the Eed Man's ideas 



410 



INDEX. 



DEE . 

about ; 340* : the great 
dream of life; 388, 389* 
331 : see also ' Dahkohta' 

Dream-bed, the ; 390* 

Drum (the) used by communi- 
cators with • the Mahnitoos ; 
394* 

Drummond I. ; 21 

Ducks Is. ; 20, 21 



Eagle, decoration of head with 

quills of; 339, 388 
Eboulemens, Les ; 372 
Elder, red-berried ; 2, 8 
' Epigcea repens ' ; 186, 15 
'Epinette blanche', P ; 274 (f. n.) 

— rouge', P ; 271* 
Erie; 350 

— L. ; ancient levels; 367, 356 : 

singular storminess ; 350 

e&titrrsamtr anti tf)tTOtta> 

%iVL%> tf)t; 129, xv. xvii 
Evil Spirit, the; see 'Water- 
Spirit ' 



Fairies; 397* 

Fasting, the Ked Man's ; 389, 331 

Fire-fly, the; 374* 

Fish; 110* 121-2* 133, 199, 217, 

233, 250, 264, 323-5, 328 
Fishing-nets ; 121, 346* 277, 264 
— spears ; 346-9*, 324 
Flambeau L. ; 309 ; E. ; 389 : 

cause of this name, 309 ; 

cf. 347* 
Flower-pot I. ; 20-1 
'Fly-away, Cape'; 40, and see 

' Mirage ' 
Fogs on the Great Lakes ; 30-9, 

202, 300, 332, 336 
'Fort'; 262-3 



HEN 

' Foxes, the ' ; 331*: their proper 

name ; ib. 
Frogs; 182, 9, 12 
Fur-trade, the ; see ' Griffin ', 

'Hudson's Bay Co.' and 

'North-West Co.' 



Gargantua, C. ; legend about a 
rock near it ; 233 : lichens 
near it ; 242 

Garry, Ft. ; 262, 297 

George, Ft. ; 367 

George (St.), L. ; 23, 194, 347 

Georgian B., the; 186, 18, 259 

Ghent, the treaty of; 336 

Giants; 293 

Gibraltar Pt. ; 46 

Gitchee Gumee ; 210 

— Manito ; 210 
Goat I. ; 354* 364 
Gougichin, L. ; see ' Kootchi- 

tching ' 
' Grandfather ' a title of respect : 

382* 
Grand I. ; 353 

— Portage, and the North-West 

Company's Station ; 296, 
263 (f. n.), 259 

— B. ; 84, 242, 296 

— Traverse B. ; 306 (f. n.) 
Green B. ; its names ; 327 (f. n.) 
'Griffin', the; 325 

Gros Cap (L. Superior); 377, 
100, 25 

Hakmatak, the ; 271* 
'Hard- wood'; 255 (f. n.) 
Helderberg-group ; 356* 
Hemlock, ground ; 277, 125 

— spruce ; 178, 267 

Henry, A. ; his adventures ; 
330-5 



INDEX. 



411 



HIA 

Hiawatha ; see ' Manabozho ' 

- — , the Song of (Mr. Longfel- 
low's poem); metre; xiii: 
' scene ' ; T. M. : value ; 
xiii.* 

Hickory, the ; 177 

Hochelaga; 243 

Holland Landing ; 4 

— E.; 4 

Hudson, Henry, 257 

— 's B. ; 216, 257, 254: and see 
* Laurentian ' : route be- 
tween it and L. Superior; 
216 

Company ; 257-263, 216 

Hull, General; 367 

Humming-bird, the ruby-throat- 
ed ; 384* 

Huron, L. (Proper) — dark 
colour of its surface ; 349* : 
clearness of its water; 125 : 
western coast ; 145 : other 
names ; 350 

Huronian 'rock'; 254, 

Hurons, the; 116, 243, 325-9, 
334, 351: their language; 
187-8 



Ice-bergs ; 49, 172, 372 
Ignace, St. [Loyola] ; 36 

— L, and its M. ; 35-6, 228-9, 

237, 300, 213 
— , Mission de ; 326-9 ; adjacent 

forts and villages ; 327-9 
Illinois, the ; 351 

— K. ; 251 : and L. Michigan 

Canal; 337 
Incantations: 395, 130-2, 342, 

341, 358 
Iris, medical use of the ; 276* 

— I. ; see ' Goat I.' 

Iroquois [or ' Five ', or ' Six ', 



KEE 

* Nations'], the; 269, 181, 
184-5, 316, 325, 329 : their 
language ; 187-8, 244, 380 : 
also see ' Thunder ' 
Pte; 100, 200, 318 



James' B. ; 216, 262 

Jeebi ( = ghost), &n&Jeebi-kahna; 
345* 

Jesuits, the ; in general ; 283, 
36 : their ancient ' missions' 
at Saut Ste. Marie, La 
Pointe, and Mackinaw ; 270, 
199, 325-9, 123 : their pre- 
sent mission on the Kahmi- 
nistikwoya ; 283-4*, 255-6, 
269 

Jogues, le Pere Isaac ; 270 

Johnson, Sir Wm. ; 370* 382 

Joliet, M. ; 327 

Joseph's I., St. ; 192-3, 21, 22-3 

Jossakeed, the ; 341, 392* 

Kahka-bekka Fs., the ; 288* 

Kahministikwoya ; 380*: theE., 
its valley, and the route by 
it to the Eed E. settlement ; 
245-56, 259, 260, 263, 269, 
283-4, 286, 287, 297, 52-73 

Kahninistigua ; 380 

Keetchi; 210 

— Gahmi '; ib., and see 'Supe- 

rior' 
Seebi; 193, and see 'Mary's 

(St.) E.' 
washk ; 280* 

— Gtimmi ; 210 

— Mahnitoo ; 210, 220 

— Mokoman; 210 
Kee-weena (the) peninsula ; 298, 

85 



412 



INDEX. 



KEN 

Kennedy, Capt. ; 17, 296 

"Keno-cami ; 210 

Kingston ; 175 

Kitchi ; see ' Keetchi ' 

* Knees, the ' ; 232, 44, 299 

Konigstein; 241-2, 50 

Kootchitching (and Kutchitch- 

ing); 373* 
— L. : scenery; 373* : Ojibwas; 

181, 6 



Lakes are regarded as animate ; 
351, 380* 

Laplanders (the) ; resemblance 
of their magic to the Ked 
Men's; 358 

Larch, the American ; 271* 

1 Laurel, ground ' ; 186, 15 

Laurentian lakes, the great ; 
their ancient shores ; 178 ; 
cf. 366 

— » ' rock ' ; 254 

— waters ; x. : their western- 
most sources; 253, 297: 
the water-shed between 
them and Hudson's Bay 
waters; 266, 270, 253-4, 
296-7 : that between them 
and Missisippian ; 254 
(f.n.) 

Lawrence (St.), Gulf of; 372, 
157 

— , K. ; 370-2* : its rapids ; 
371*: its Ojibwa name; 
193 : also see ' Laurentian' 

Leelinaw ; 76 

Heelutato antf tyt ^ufcfotrtf* 
jintt#; 74, 291-5, 381, 

382, xv, xvi 
Levi, Pt. ; 371* 
Lichens ; see ' Superior ' 
Lightning-fly, the : see ' Fire-fly' 



MAS 

Lizard, the ' big- water- ' ; 194, 

23 
Locative suffix, Algonquin \-ng 

preceded by a vowel] ; 378-9 
' Locust, the rattling' ; 185, 14 
LongPt.; 176, 46 
Loon, the ; 282* 
'Lot'; 179 
Loyola; 36 
LunaL; 358* 
Lunar bow, the; 358* 
Lusson, M. de St, ; 199 
Lynx, the ; 237, 218, 350* 



Machi-gummie ; 210, 211 

M'Kay's M. ; 286, 256, 51, 52, 
73 

Mackinaw I. ; 313, XII, and 
xvii. 

— , missions and forts on fore- 
lands west and south of; 
327-35, 123 

Magic; 389-395* 

— wand; 392 
Mahnitoo ( = spirit) ; 220 

— applied to anything marvel- 

lous, from its being sup- 
posed to be inhabited by a 
spirit; 237 (f.n.), 136 [and 
cf. 379—80*] 

— , Keetchi [or Kitchi] ( = Great) ; 
220, 309-10 

— , Matchi ; 379* : see ' Water- 
Spirit ' 

— Minis; 237 (f. n.) 

— Wac [pronounced wahJc] ; 

235, 314 

— Wahning ; 376, 188 

— wigwam ; 391* 
Mahnitoolin; 375*: Is.; 376, 

181: I. (Gt.); 21, 187, 
270 : L. ; 186 



INDEX. 



413 



MAE 
Mahnitoos (= spirits), the; 2.19 
' Maid of the Mist ', the ; 360 
Makak, the; 192, 277 
' Mammelons ', les ; 44, 232, 299 
Mamainse; 377*: Ms.; 26, 99, 

201 
Manabohzho; see'Xinnibohzhoo' 
Mandans, the; 316 
Mani; 188 (f. n.)* 
Manitoit (or -to or -do) ; see 

' Mdhnitoo ' 
Maple- sugar; 285* 
Marmoaze-, 377-8 
Marquette, le Pere Jacques; 

326-8, 283 
Mary's (St.) K, ; 193, 23-4, 100, 

116, 197-9, 191, 318, 259 
MasJceynongey ; 188 (f. n.) : the ; 

see 'Pike' 
Massachusetts -'Indians' of the 

17th century, the; 292, 306 

(f.n.), 358,399, and see El. 
MatcM; 211, 222, 379 

— Mahnitoo ; see ' Mahnitoo ' 
Matting, bulrush ; 280* 
'May-flower, the'; 186, 15 
Medicine ; natural ; 344 : super- 
natural; 342-4 

'Medicine'; 343 

— dance, the ; its legendary in- 

stitutor; 235 

— man ; see ' Meeda' 

— spear : see ' Magic wand ' 
Medina-sandstone ; 356-7 
Meeda, the; 391 (f. n.)* 
Meemogovissiooees, the ; 218* 
Menaboju, Menniboujou ; see 

' Ninnibohzhoo ' 
Menobranchus lateralis ; 194, 23 
Menomonee ; 313 

— R, Fs. of; 378* 
Menomonees, the ; 313 
Menong; 236, 237 



MIS 

Meurons (des), Ft. and Pte. ; 
246, 260, 263 (f. n.) 

Miamies, the; 345* 

Michabou ; see ' Mish-aboo ' 

Michigan, &c. ; 351*: other 
names of L. ; ib* 

Michillimackinac ; see c Macki- 
naw' 

Michipicoten ; see ' Missipicooat- 
ong' 

Michipous ; see ' Mish-zhoo ' 

Migoss, the; 196 

Milky Way, the Ojibwa name 
of; 383* 

Mina-hik, the ; 274 (f. n.) 

Minis (or Minnis) ; 188 

Minnee Sohta (or Minnesota, or 
OsJcibugi Seepi, or St. 
Peter's E.), the; 387,390, 
400, 260 (f. n.), T. M. 

Minnis-ays; 345* 318, 338 

'Mirage,' the; 397*: Ojibwa 
name ; 299 

Mish-ahoo; 121-2; 230, 230-1 

Mishee, Missi ; 211 

Missibeezi; 218, 29, 31, and see 
'Water Spirit' 

Missions ; see ' Jesuits ' 

Missi-pic-oo&t-ong ; 378* 

.— B., Pt., R, and I. ; 215, 247, 
65, 26, 203 

Missi-sahga; 351-2 (f. n.) * 

— s, the (or -sagies, or -saguas, 
or -saugas) ; ib.*, 181 

Missisawgaiegon ; 306 (f. n.) 

Missi Seepi; 387*: discovery 
and descent ; 327 : navi- 
gable part ; 246 : water- 
shed between it and the 
Great Lakes, 254 (f. n.): 
plan for passage of armed 
vessels between ; 337 (f. n.) 

Mississippi ; see ' Missi Seepi ' 



414 



INDEX. 



MIT 

Mitchi ; 211 

Mittens; 279 

Moccasin, the ; 279* 

Mohawks, the [one of ' the Five 
Nations ' or Iroquois] ; see 
' Iroquois ' 

< Montagnais,' the ; 271,311 

Montreal; 242*: Ojibwa cor- 
ruption of this word; 193, 
188 

— , the city of; 258 

'Moons;' 352* T. M. 

Mosquitoes ; 9 

Mudjiekeewis (=West Wind); 
220*: his fight with Mana- 
bozho ; 235, 198 ; cf. 318 

Mushkodainsug (-denshug, &c), 
the ; 378, 270, 334 

Muskrat (or musquash) the; 
282* 



Nadouessi [&c], the; 325-6* 
and see ' Dahkohtas : ' 
Grand L. des ; 352 

Nahdowsi- Sahging ; 183 

Nahdowa^, the; 184, 210 

Nails, finger and toe ; legend ac- 
counting for them ; 107, 310 

Navy I.; 366 

Naygow Wudjoo ; 294 

Nanaboujou ; see ' Manabozho ' 

Neebish Eapids and I. ; 306-7* 

Neenimohshi; 71 

Neepigon, and kindred words, 
304 

— , B., L., andK. ; 98-9, 308-9, 
246: House; 262 

— , other names of L. ; 375 (f.n.) 

Neejpis-ing. L. ; 307 (f. n.): le- 
gends originating from the 
shape of a mountain near ; 
316: also see < Bed B.' 



OJI 

Newark; 370* 
Newmarket; 4 
Niagara; 152 

— Fs. ; see E. 

— Ft. ; 370, 366, 335 

— limestone ; 356, 20 

— B. ; xii : its birds, flowers, 

and trees; 354* 361:itsFs., 
and their Spirits ; 290, 355- 
60* 113: geology; 356, 
354: rapids; 353* 289: 
spray-bows ; 358* : sus- 
pension-bridges ; 360, 365; 
370: whirlpool; 357,365* 

— , town of [at mouth of E.] ; 
370* 

Nick, &c. ; 220-1 (f. n.) 

Ninnibohzhoo ; 229, 44, 194, 
196, 198, 204, 299 

Nipi-gon ; see ' Neepigon ' 

Nipis-ing ; see * Neepis-ing ' 

North Channel; 21, 189, 259 • 

Northern Lights ; 83 

Northmen, the alleged discovery 
of North America by the ; 
364, 19 

Northwest Company, the ; 56 f 
63, 258-261 

Nottawa-saga ; 183 



Oak Eidges, the; 178, 179; cf. 
175, 366 

Odahwas, the, 270, 188, 184, 
270, 330, 395-6 : their lan- 
guage ; 187-8, 210 (f. n.) 

* CEdipoda sulphurea;' 186, 14 

Ojibwa; 265-6 

Ojibwas, the ; names ; 266 : 
' physique,' dress, &c. ; ib. 9 
268-9: language; 184, 
187-8, 210, 268, 378-9*: 
situation; 269, 330: on 



INDEX. 



415 



ONE 

theKahministikwoya ; 266- 

9 : also see * Dahkohtas,' 

and Thunder ' 
Oneida grit; 356-7 
Onondaga-salt group ; 356* 
Ontario, L. ; scenery ; 175, 369 : 

ancient shores ; 8,175,178, 

366: names, 175, 351 
Orator, long speech of an ; 402 

(f. n.) 
Orillia; 6 

Oriole, the Baltimore ; 354* 
Orleans, I. of; 364 
Oskibugi Seepi; see * Minnee 

Sohta' 
Ossuaries; 345 
Ottawa City ; grounds for its 

selection to be the seat of 

government; 176 
— E. ; its colour ; 247 (f. n.) : 

old route by it to the Great 

Lakes; 259 
Ottawas, the ; see * Odahwas ' 
Ottigaumies, the ; see ' Foxes ' 



Painting ; the Eed Man's custom 
of painting himself (espe- 
cially red), particularly 
when about to ' go on the 
war-path ' or to take a part 
in superstitious rites ; 343 
(f. n.)*, 388, 392 ; cf. 161, 
171 : the legendary insti- 
tutor of this custom ; 235 

' Paps,' the ; 44, 232, 299 

Paris, the treaty of ; 329 

' Pate,' Le ; 241-2, 50, 82 

Pauguk ; 310, 47, 107 

Peche, I. a la ; 330 

Peeboan; 111-12 

Pembina; 246 

' Pemmican : ' 214 



QUE 

Peter's E., St. ; see ' Minnee 

Sohta ' 
Petroleum; 349 
Pcnetanguishene ; 374* 
Pic E. and House ; 305* 
' Pictured Eocks,' the ; see 

' SchJcuee-archibi-i 
Pie I. ; 241, 48-50, 82 
Pigeon E.; 296 (f. n.), 255: 

route by it to the Eed E. 

settlement ; 296-8, 260, 259 
Pike, the great North-American ; 

122, 187, 188 (f. n.) 
Pipe, carving on a ; 387 

— -stone, the ; 387 
Pitch-stone; 217 

Plaiting the hair, the Eed Man's 

habit of; 381* 
Pointe du St. Esprit, La ; the 

mission ; 326 : the island ; 

46, 176, 313, 391: the N. 

W. C.'s station ; 259 
Pontiac ; 329, 330 
Porcupine-quills ; 196, 279* 
Porphyry, Pt. ; 45 
'Portage;' 248 
1 Portails, ■ Les,' see * Schkuee- 

archibi-kung ' 
' Presents/ the ' Indian ' ; 270, 

337 
'Propeller;' 66 
Presqu' Isle I. [L. Erie] ; 176 

— E. [L. Superior] ; 378 
Pukwndjinees ; 291-2: the; 

397* 

{Sultfmtirjtnctf, JUeltnafo 
autftije; 74 



Quebec; 371* 

Queenston, battle of; 367-8* 
— Heights (or M.); 366-9* 
356, 178 



416 



INDEX. 



QUE 
Queenston Susp. -Bridge ; 370 
— Village; 367* 
Quinte, B. of; 175, 178 



Rainy L. ; 297, 246, 259, 260 
(f.n.), 262, 302 (f.n.) 

Raspberries, the wild ; 377* 

Raspberry -Moon (=July); T. 
M. 

Rattle, the; 392* 339 

— -snake, the ; its name ; 342 

(f. n.): awe of; 382, xxv. 
Raymbanlt, le Pere Charles ; 270 
Red Man, the half-European- 

ized ; his garb ; 278 

— in Canada, the ; 180 

Red R. of the North; 259 : the 
founder of the settlement 
on it ; see ' Selkirk' : routes 
from Canada to this settle- 
ment ; 245-56, 259, 260, 
296-8 

— South ; 259 

Rein-deer, the ; see ' Carriboo ' 
'Reserves,' 'Indian;' 181, 189, 

256 
Ronde, I. ; see ' Miimis-ays ' 
Roots, use of tree- ; 277 
Royale, I. ; 236-9, 45 



4 Sable, Le Grand ;' 381* 
Sachem, the ; 311 
Sacs t the ; see ' Sahleies 9 
Sagganosh (= English) ; 390 
Saginaw, B. ; 306 (f. n.)*, 330 
Saguenay; 211 (f. n.)*, 306 (f. 

n.): theR. ; 372* 
Sahgima ; 184, 311 (f. n.) 
Sahging; 184, 211, 306 (f. n.) 
Sah/cies, the; 331* 



SIS 

Saint : see St. 

Salle, La; 370, 366, 336, 325, 
327 (f. n.) 

Saugeen; 184, 211 

Saut Ste. Marie ; 197, 235, 328, 
318, 24, 100-2, 110: ca- 
nal ; 200, 225, 190, 198, x. 

Sauteaux, Sauteurs ; 266 

Scales of man, the silver ; see 
' Nails ' 

Scalp-locks hung on dress ; 388 

Schkuee-archibi-kung ; 204 : the 
rocks so called) ; 203-9, 
320, 29, 395 : their legen- 
dary originator ; 234 

Schlosser, Ft.; and Landing; 
366 

Seebi and seepi ; 387, 307 (f. n.), 
193 

Selkirk, Lord, 263, 63, 260 

Semple, Govr. ; his death ; 260 

Serpents in the Great Lakes, tra- 
dition about monstrous ;{ 
393; cf. 'Water-Spirit' 

Shad-fly, the [the whitensh is 
also called ' the lake-shad']; 
197 

Shaguamikon ; 46 : see ' Pointe \ 

Shee-shee-fcwoy [a word expres- 
sive of the sound]; see 
'Rattle' 

Shells; necklaces of; 388: re- 1 
garded as charms, ib*f 

Sliingnak-ongse ; his fasts and 
dreams; 389* 

Silurian strata ; 356* 

Silver; 217 

Simcoe, Govr.; 176, 179 

— , L. ; 352, 373* : names; 179, 
383* 

Sioux; 325; the; see ■ Dah- 
kohtas ' 

Siskawet, the; 112, 121 



IXDEX. 



417 



SIX 

Six [originally Five] Nations, 

the ; see ' Iroquois ' 
Slate Is. ; 31, 226 
Small-pox, a cure for ; 253 (f. n.) 
Snake-fence, the ; 177 
Snow-shoe, the ; 338*, 196 : its 

Ojibwa name ; 339 : the 

carriboo's ; 339 
— dance, the; 339 
Spirits; supposed to reside in 

natural objects, inanimate 

as well as animate ; 222-5. 

379-80, 342: also see 'Mah- 

nitoos ' 
Spruce, hemlock; 178, 125, 267 
— , white ; 274 (f. n.) 
Squaw ; Tl^ 

Cram, tf)e dfattf)ies£; 

88, 122, xv, xvi 

Squirrels; 179-180 

St. ; for names beginning thus, 
see under next word to 
< St,' 

Stadicona; 243 

Stars in North America, the 
brilliance of the ; 383* 

Stone of the Water- Spirit (or 
Evil Spirit), the; 393 

Stone-Fort; 262-3 

Stones regarded with awe, large 
or remarkable ; see ' Spirits ' 

Stories and story-telling, the 
Eed Man's ; xiv* 

Sturgeon, the; 113, 121, T. M. : 
spearing it ; 346-9 : its le- 
gendary slayer ; 233-4: its 
Algonquin name ; 378,113 

Sun-God, the; 397* 82 

Superior, L. ; clearness; 347*: 

fogginess; 202, 226-8, 218, 

30, 32-9 : freezing, 203, 

111: geology; 298, 236, 

E 



TOA 

377, 318: lichens; 242* 
first mail-boat on ; xi* 
other names ; 210, 352 
383: rocks; 225,203, 228, 
30, 32, 37, 38,99: scenery in 
eastern part ; 377* : storm- 
iness; 201, 226, 31-40 
sacrifices to it; 222, 380 
Spirit ; 380*, 394 (f. n.)* 
temperature: 252 (f. n.) 
also see ' Hudson's B., 7 
' Laurentian,' and ' Missi 
Seepi ' 

— City; 246 

Surname [the equivalent to a], 
the descent of; different 
customs ; 312 



Talon, M.; 199, 327 " 
Tama -gamingue ; 211 
Tamarak, the; 271*, 280: its 

other names ; ib. 
Taquamenaw E. and B. ; 201 
Tarenyawagon ; 230 
Temis-caming ; 211 
Tequamenon K. ; 201 
Thimble-berry, the ; 191 
Thousand Is., the ; 370* 
' Thuja occidentalis ' (' white 

cedar'); 192* 274 
Thunder, modes of accounting 

for; 395-6* 

— B. ; L. Huron ; cause of its 

name ; 330 : Ojibwas on : 
ib. 

Superior; 48 (f. n.), 247 

(f. n.), 240 (f. n.), 51, 81. 
246, 201-2 

— C. and M. ; 239-241, 43, 46- 

50 
Tinne, the; 271* 
Toads; 221, 133 



E 



4 IS 



INDEX, 



TOM 

Tomb-stone, a Ked Man's; 399 
(f. n.) 

Toronto; 176-7, 351-2: the 
city; 175-7, 362: 'high- 
lands ' ; 369 

Totem; 312: the; 311, 399 
(f.n.) 

■ Township, ,' the ; 179 

Tracy, L. de ; 352 

Trees, great age of; 9, 161, 
182: comparison of their 
life with that of men, 161, 
384 

Trillium, the; 382* 

Trout, great lake- (Salmo na- 
maycush); 114, 324 (f.n.)*, 
325, 217, 264, 133 

— , ' speckled ' (Salmo fonti- 
nalis) ; 217, 250 (f. n.), 187 

Turtle, the resemblance of Mac- 
kinaw to a; 316; hence, 
perhaps, suncby supersti- 
tions and legends, as well 
as the name of that island ; 
314-16 



Unktahee; 393-4* 



Vermilion; see 'Painting 5 
Vines, the wild; 364* 
'Vinland'; 364 
Violets, yellow ; 295-6*, 256 
Virginia Creeper, the; 153 



' W (the) in Algonquin words ; 

its whistled sound; is 

dropped by Europeans ; 375 

Waggina-gan, the ; 271* 

Wakbahno; 344, 376 : the, 358* 



YAG 

Wcihbun ( = ' East,' or ' East- 
Wind'); 376 (f.n.)*, 344* 
220 (f. n.) 

Wampum ; "see ' Shells ' 

War-cry ; 366 ; cf. 9, 102, 103, 
152, 168, 390 

— dance ; 235 (its legendary in- 

stitutor); cf. 9, 102, 103, 
152 

— paint ; see ' Painting ' 

trr earner mxts fyz; 129, 
xy, xvii 

Water-Spirit (or Evil Spirit), 
the ; and his attendant- 
spirits ; 393-4* 233, 194, 
188, 99, xv, xvii 

Water-Wraith's home,the ; 

27, xiii 
Wattap; 277* 272, 70, 95, 112 
Wawatam ; 330-5 
Wazhusk; 334 
Wellington Mine ; 191 
Whale -harpooning; 24 
Whitefish, the ; 346* 217, 187 : 

legend about its origin ; 

88-115, 122, xv, xvi 

— Pt.; 201 

Whortle-berry, the ; 192 
Wigwam, the ; 280* 266-7 
William, Et. ; 263-4, 255, 259, 

52-65, 203, 196 
Wind-Gods, the ; 220 (f. n.) * 
Winibegoes (or Winnibagoes) ; 

270, 380 
Winnipeg, L. ; 254, 259, 178 

— K. ; 297, 251 
Wisconsin, drift of; 318 
TVob'n, WoUnaJcie; 376* 
Woods, L. of the ; 269, 259 



Yaganash; 390* 



INDEX. 



419 



YAN 
Yankee ; 89 : the Ojibwa equi- 
valent ; 89, 210 

Years, Red Men's mode of reck- 
oning ; 398 



YOE 
Yellow scum on water ; 235-6 
Yonge Street; 179 
York ; see ' Toronto ' 



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